The Triad of the Trial
by Anteater
Summary: The Grave Digger trial is finally here, but not everything goes as planned.
1. Prologue

A/N: Here is a brand new story! Since we may or may not get to see the Grave Digger trial this season, I thought I would see if I could write one. The first chapter should be posted sometime tomorrow, but please let me know what you think! The more reviews I get, the faster I type. Thanks guys and enjoy!

The Triad of the Trial

Prologue

April 24, 2010

Location Unknown

10:07 am EST

Whenever Dr. Temperance Brennan woke up disoriented, she knew that it was not a good sign. It usually meant one of two things: one; her liver was currently failing to metabolize the massive amounts of alcohol that she had unwisely consumed the night before resulting in an unproductive morning filled with headaches and nausea or two; she had involuntarily consumed some sort of drug or hallucinogen that was causing her the disorientation. Neither of these were good outcomes as far as Brennan was concerned. As she slowly came back to consciousness, she resisted the urge to shake her head to clear the fog from her brain, knowing that would result in more pain than it was worth. She laid as still as possible as she gathered information about her surroundings. The first thing she realized was that she was laying flat on a cold surface and judging by the tingling sensation in her left arm, she was lying right on top of it. The second was that besides the solitary light bulb shining weakly from the ceiling, there was no other source of light in the room. Deciding it was safe to try sitting up, she quickly turned to rest her back against the wall, momentarily closing her eyes to try and stop the room from spinning. She thought she heard a muffled voice, but the sound of the blood rushing through her head drowned out any other noise. She lifted her hand to her hairline to steady herself when she felt a warm, sticky substance, which she automatically knew, was blood. Definitely have a concussion, she thought, adding the presence of the cut on her forehead and her dizziness together to come up with that conclusion. Opening her eyes again, she glanced at her surroundings, trying to figure out where exactly she was. The room was only about 12 feet by 12 feet and that the roof could not have been more than 7 feet high. Looking around the room, she noticed some bricks, a rake, and a rusty bucket, confirming her suspicions that she was in an old tool shed of some kind. Turning her head slightly to her right, she noticed two lumps in the other corner of the room. And one of the lumps looked very familiar.

"Booth?"

*********

April 24. 2010

Superior Court of the District of Columbia

10:15 am EST

"You honor, I know the testimony was supposed to start fifteen minutes ago, but it is not my fault that my witnesses are not here. I'm sure there is a perfectly good explanation as to their tardiness to the court today."

"Your honor, if Ms. Julian cannot produce her witnesses, then I move for an immediate mistrial," the defense attorney said as Caroline Julian turned and glared at him for all she was worth.

The judge sighed. He knew from the minute he was assigned to oversee this trial that it was going to be an absolute circus and so far, he wasn't disappointed. As he was thinking about his decisions and trying to rub away the inevitable migraine, he heard the shrill ring of a phone coming from the gallery. He saw one of the women in the gallery blush and quickly divert her phone to voicemail while saying, "Sorry." Sighing again, he said, "Ms. Julian, Mr. Andrews is correct. Without the testimony of those three witnesses, you do not have a case. I will give you twenty-four hours to produce your witnesses or else I will have to declare mistrial. Understood?"

Caroline was not happy, but nodded.

"All right, then," the judge said. "We will resume at 10 am tomorrow morning. That's all." He banged his gavel and the courtroom bustled as people were gathering their things to leave. Caroline whipped around to face Cam and Angela, the latter of which was checking her voicemail to see who called her. Caroline hoped it was one of her absent witnesses.

Turning to Cam, she said, "Do you know anything about this, Cherie? Because if this is some sort of practical joke, I'm not laughing."

"Ms. Julian, I am as surprised as you are. Dr. Hodgins and Dr. Brennan were both in the lab yesterday and I talked to Booth on the phone. They all were planning on being here," Cam said, as she looked over at Angela, who had turned as pale as a ghost, her cell phone still to her ear. Cam had seen that exact same look on another person's face only once before and was starting to feel like something was very wrong. "Angela? Are you okay?"

Angela looked at Caroline and Cam, not saying a word. She put her phone on speaker and played them the voicemail, the mechanical tone of the voice striking fear into all their hearts.

"I have taken Seeley Booth, Jack Hodgins, and Temperance Brennan. You have twenty-five hours to keep quiet and let the Grave Digger trial end in a mistrial. After that time, I will give you GPS coordinates to their location. If you make any attempt to contact the FBI or police, I will know and Seeley Booth, Jack Hodgins, and Temperance Brennan will die. This is my final communication."

As the message ended, all three women looked over to where the police were leading the defendant out of the room. Right before the police closed the door, taking their charge back to the county jail to await the next hearing, Heather Taffet turned around and gave them a smirk.


	2. Chapter 1

A/N: Thanks for the support so far. Please let me know what you think. This story is still evolving and your reviews help me write faster. Thanks again and enjoy!

Chapter 1

April 21, 2010

Jeffersonian Medico-Legal Lab

11:33 am EST

The tension in the lab was so thick that even Brennan knew it was there. Ever since the trial date had been set for Heather Taffet AKA the Grave Digger, the lab had been a tense environment. Brennan was just waiting for the trial to begin and end so that they could all get back to what they did the best: catch people like Taffet and put them in prison. Everyone's work had suffered because of the tension but especially Hodgins. Brennan wanted to help him but she knew that her lack of social skills would probably make the situation worse than it already was. She had consulted Booth about the situation and even though Booth told her that he trusted her to say the right thing to Hodgins, she still wasn't sure. A crash in the lab startled her out of her thoughts. She looked around, realizing she was on the forensic platform and had been staring at the same sternum for the last five minutes. This was another reason why Brennan wanted the trial to be over. She was usually not prone to fits of introspective thinking but lately, she has been completely unproductive and it has been driving her crazy. She made a mental note to talk to Booth about this; to see if he was experiencing the same thing that she was. He had been in a mood recently as well. Even though Brennan was not very good at reading people, she knew him and she knew that he was trying to mask his feelings to protect her. It was classic alpha-male behavior and if Booth was anything, he was an alpha-male.

"Bones!" Speak of the devil, she thought as she heard his shout in the lab. She looked over at him as he jogged up the steps to the forensic platform after swiping his card through so the alarms did not go off. Even in times like this, when everything seemed like it was upside down, she was always comforted by his presence. They had been spending more and more time together recently and the weekly dinners at each other's apartment had become nightly dinners and ended in late night movies and talks. She found that as much as she was comforted by Booth's presence, he seemed to be equally comforted by hers, which gave her a feeling of contentment that she had never gotten from her work. And while this feeling frightened her, it was like a drug; she constantly wanted more.

"Booth, what are you doing here? Please don't tell me we have another case. I am already working on the identification of two other sets of bones and we have the trial in three days. Even with the help of the multiple interns here at the Jeffersonian, there is no way that I can handle another case right now," Brennan told him.

"Whoa, Bones, easy. We don't have another case. Hacker has taken us off the active duty rotation until the case is over. So instead of doing the mountain of paperwork that is sitting on my desk, I decided to come over here and see if you were ready for lunch," Booth told her as he joined her on the forensic platform, giving her his classic charm smile, but giving her the special 'Bones variety' that was only for her. He knew that she had been stressed out the last couple of weeks, ever since they had gone over the evidence for the trial and Booth had seen the note that she had written him when she was in the car with Hodgins.

*********

April 2, 2010

J. Edgar Hoover FBI Building

1:30 pm EST

"Ms. Julian, I think that is all of the evidence for the trial right? Because if it is, I really need to get back to the lab. I realize that even though Ms. Wick is a very capable intern, I am nervous about how the other members of the team-"

"Dr. Brennan," Caroline Julian interrupted. "We have more one piece of evidence to go over and your input on this one is essential, Cherie."

Booth could feel the tension rolling off of her in waves. He knew that the trial was stressful; hell, he was feeling the stress more than any other case had affected him. He would wake up at night and think that he was still in that yellow submarine, still in that ship that was set to blow up. He hoped it hadn't affected his Bones in that same way but he could see it in her face and in her mannerisms. Now, she looked like she was ready to bolt. He looked over at Hodgins, trying to read why Bones wanted to leave so bad. Hodgins was leaned back in his chair, staring at his hands that were underneath the ledge of the conference table they were sitting at. If Hodgins knew what this evidence was, he wasn't reacting. But then again, Hodgins had really withdrawn into himself since this process began. Booth had a feeling he still had a lot of guilt over his kidnapping by the Grave Digger but Booth didn't think it was his place to talk about it with him.

"Dr. Hodgins, Dr. Brennan, the last piece of evidence that we have to go over is the notes that the both of you wrote in the car while you were both kidnapped. Now we are using this evidence to prove your mental state during the kidnapping and to show the trauma of being buried alive. In my opinion, this will help the jury get a picture of exactly what Taffet did to you," Caroline told them. Booth was immediately intrigued. He had no idea that they had written notes during their ordeal. Sitting up more in his seat, he leaned toward Brennan just a little bit, ready to give her any support that she needed.

"Dr. Hodgins, first is your note to Ms. Montenegro," Caroline said as she pulled the note out of her file and placed it on the table.

"I know what it says, Ms. Julian. All I ask is that Angela not be in the courtroom when it is read at trial. She knows my feelings. She doesn't need to hear them read to everyone like that," Hodgins said, breaking his self-imposed silence and speaking for the first time that day. Booth automatically felt for the guy. He flashed back to three years ago and remembered how in love with Angela he was. He knew now that Hodgins not only was reliving his experience in the ground; he was also thinking about his failed engagement.

"And secondly, we have Dr. Brennan's note to Agent Booth." With that statement, Booth felt Bones instantly tense beside him and he became conflicted. While he really wanted to know what was in the note, he didn't want Bones to be uncomfortable or in pain because he knew. He would do anything to keep her from being in pain.

"Dr. Brennan, are you okay with having Agent Booth know the contents of your note to him? Because if you are not, then we can make the same arrangements for you and ask Agent Booth to leave the courtroom when it is read," Caroline asked her in an uncharacteristically soft manner.

Booth turned his head to look at her, trying to get a sense of what was going on in that genius brain of hers. She turned toward him and looked him right in the eyes. He saw fear and pain in those bright blue orbs and it felt like a fist squeezed his heart in his chest. He was happily surprised when he felt her discreetly put her hand on his leg right above his knee and gave it a squeeze as she nodded to Caroline to read the note. As Caroline held the note, encased in its plastic evidence bag, up to read, he recognized the type on the page as a page from one of her books. The writing on the edge of the paper outside the text was definitely hers, but not the careful script that he was used to seeing from her. Instead, it looked hurried and he saw the blood spots on the paper along with her handwriting. It broke his heart.

"To my partner Special Agent Seeley Booth: At this point, I am unsure if anybody will ever find Hodgins and I and I know that you will blame yourself for not finding me in time. Please do not do that to yourself. I want to you know that I knew that you would never give up. You have helped me grow and find other aspects of life that I did not know previously existed and I will be forever grateful to you for that. Thank you for being a great partner and an even better friend. Sincerely, Bones."

As Caroline read the letter, he felt Bones' hand squeeze his leg harder and put his hand over hers and linked their fingers together. He was in a state of shock. He was honored that she would write a note like that to him but was really surprised that even just a little over a year into their partnership that she would feel that way. He turned his head to try and catch her eyes but she studiously avoided his gaze; the only indication of her pain was the pressure on his hand that was currently holding her own. He needed some time to sort through his feelings about that note but his first priority was Bones; his first priority was always Bones no matter what the situation. Distantly, he heard Caroline say something about the meeting being over and he heard her and Hodgins get up and leave the room. His hand still gripped her own and he was content to sit here as long as it took for her to be okay with what just happened. Finally, she turned her head and met his questioning gaze. There were barely restrained tears in her eyes and Booth could tell that it had cost her a lot for him to be able to hear the letter. It just made him fall in love with her a little more.

"You okay, Bones?" he said to her softly, still holding her hand underneath the table. She gave him a soft smile.

"Yeah, Booth. I will be. I just want her to be in prison and for this whole thing to be over," she told him as she released his hand and got up from her seat. "Can you give me a ride back to the Jeffersonian?" she asked, clearly ready to drop this line of conversation and get back to the place of order and discipline, the place where she knows what is going on and her place in the world. Booth had always been the one to tell everyone never to push her and right now, he was going to take his own advice.

"Okay, Bones. Let's go."

*******

April 21, 2010

Jeffersonian Medico-Legal Lab

11:45 am EST

"Booth? Are you okay?" Brennan said. She thought that he looked a million miles away, even though that was physically impossible. He seemed to snap out of his trance and look at her again, with a gentle look in his eyes that he sometimes got when he looked at her, more frequently over the last several months, especially since he woke up from the coma. He broke eye contact and began shifting from foot to foot.

"Sorry, Bones. Kind of spaced out there for a minute. So, whatcha say, huh? Lunch time?" he asked, giving her that special smile that Brennan was convinced he only gave to her. The kind of smile that gave her a warm, tingling sensation throughout her body. It was a completely irrational feeling but she liked it, just like she liked the feeling it gave her when he was comforted by her presence. Deciding that she really wasn't getting any work done anyway, she decided that lunch was a good idea.

"Sure, Booth. Let me get cleaned up and then we will go," she told him, chuckling at the happy expression on his face as he followed her to her office to wait for her.

In his office across from the forensic platform, Dr. Jack Hodgins heard Brennan and Booth's playful conversation but instead of lifting his spirits, it only made him feel more detached from his friends.

He had not given up the theory that Taffet has an accomplice and he was angry that nobody believed him. This was not one of his conspiracy theories! This was a serious matter and one he truly believed was happening. He was worried about an accomplice coming back and mucking things up even more than they already were. He woke up thinking he was back in that car, only this time, he was stuck in the car with the dead bodies of Brennan and Booth and the knowledge that it was his fault that they were both dead. Hodgins knew that Booth's kidnapping was his fault; it was his fault that he took the evidence from the FBI and that action lead to Booth being taken and electrocuted and drugged. He had always considered Booth a friend (even if Booth had not felt the same way) and it sickened him that he was the reason that Booth had to go through that.

Not only did Hodgins feel the guilt from Booth's kidnapping but all of the feelings he had regarding his own kidnapping were all being brought to the surface as well, and while that involved terrible memories from being stuck inside that car, it also involved thinking about his feelings for the one person that got him through that experience: Angela. But of course he had messed that up as well. He knew he was in a dark place right now but if he could just get through the trial intact, he felt that things would begin to look up again. He worked tirelessly, pouring over the evidence again and again, looking to see if he had missed something that would point out the accomplice's identity. But so far, he had nothing.

"Hey Hodgins, you there man?" he heard Booth call out to him. Hodgins looked up to see Booth poking his head into his office.

"Yeah Booth, what's up?" he answered.

"Caroline called. She needs to see you, me, and Bones right away. I'm here to give you a ride. Let's go," Booth told him.

Hodgins felt the hair prickle at the back of his neck. "Did she say what about?" Hodgins asked, trying not to let his anxiety slip into his voice.

"Nope," Booth told him. "But she said it was urgent so let's go. The last thing I want is an angry Caroline."


	3. Chapter 2

A/N: Thank you to B0N35, Chasefan, WritingxEqualsxHappiness, Kalidris, ilovemclife, whatta-u-know, and mendenbar for reviewing. It really helps me write faster and develop the story. That being said, I am kind of surprised that I only have 8 reviews so far. Please review! Thanks for reading and enjoy.

Chapter 2

April 21, 2010

J. Edgar Hoover FBI Building

12:14 pm EST

"What do you mean all the evidence from the storage locker has been thrown out?" Booth exclaimed, breaking up the stunned silence that had previously filled the room since Caroline's announcement.

"You heard me the first time, Cherie," Caroline said, obviously not pleased with the situation. "Apparently, 'spring cleaning' is not within the spirit of the Constitution and so the judge threw it out. Useless liberal judges," Caroline finished under her breath.

"But what about all the evidence we recovered within the storage locker? All the evidence that clearly showed the Ms. Taffet had taken Booth?" Brennan asked her, looking bewildered at this turn of events.

"Fruit from the poisonous tree. Anything we learned from the 'spring cleaning' is considered inadmissible in a court of law," Caroline explained to them.

Booth sat back, trying to absorb this information. After the stress of the last couple of weeks, is this exactly what they DIDN'T need. He looked over at the other two occupants in the room; the only other two people in the world that knew what it was like to escape from the Grave Digger without giving into her demands. He looked over at Hodgins, who was standing by the table and looking like he was ready to just rage on something. Booth knew that look well. Hodgins was clenching his fists and grinding his jaw and Booth had no doubt that if Hodgins decided to punch the wall that the wall would lose. He had been watching Hodgins closely over the last several weeks and at this point, Booth was seriously concerned for the normally easy-going bug and slime guy. It hadn't helped at all that about a week ago, the news came out that Angela and Wendall had hooked up. To be honest, even though it was none of Booth's business what the rest of the squints and squinterns did outside the lab, he was disappointed in both of them. He knew Hodgins felt betrayed and he did not blame him for feeling that way.

Next he turned his attention to Brennan, his Bones. She had a look of determination on her face, the same look she gets when she is ready to take on a set of bones and stay on the forensic platform until she identified that person beyond a shadow of a doubt. He was glad to see that look. He wasn't sure how he would respond if she broke down right now. She'd had that 'sad little girl' look on her face a lot since the reading of the letter Brennan had written him when she was kidnapped. Normally, Booth would go into protective mode when he saw that look and be ready to shield her from the world, but after sleeping less than 4 hours in the last 72 hours, he wasn't sure if he could help her without breaking down himself. And right now, that was unacceptable. He needed to be strong for the team. They had to get through this together. Booth took a deep breath, collecting his wayward thoughts and calming himself down before responding further.

"Okay, Caroline, so all of that evidence is out, we can't use it. So where does that put the case? Do we even still have a shot at this anymore?" Booth asked her.

Caroline also took a deep breath before responding. "Well, it's not a total disaster, but it's close. We still have the evidence that was not blown up from Dr. Brennan and Dr. Hodgin's kidnapping and the minute evidence we found in Booth's apartment. But to be honest, the key to this trial was always the three of you and your testimony. I believe that we can still win if we emphasize the human cost of Ms. Taffet's actions. Juries love the human side of the trial."

"There is something else, too," Hodgins said, looking back and forth between the three of them with a wild look in his eyes.

"Well, I'm all ears, Dr. Hodgins," Caroline told him, motioning for him to continue.

"Actually, Ms. Julian, that is not true. You are comprised of bone, vascular tissue, nerves, blood vessels; a lot more than the cartilage that is present in the human ear. In fact, I am not sure it would be biologically sustainable-"

"Bones. It's just an expression. It means that she is ready to listen to what Hodgins has to say," Booth told her as he interrupted her gently.

Understanding dawned on Brennan's face. "Oh. That makes more sense. Please, continue."

"We could delay the trial a little bit and find the accomplice," Hodgins stated, looking ready for a fight.

"Not again," Caroline said.

"No, hear me out. I have been pouring over the evidence and I have found some anomalies. There is a tiny bit of human sweat on Booth's windowsill that we managed to save and it does not match Heather Taffet. This has to be the accomplice," Hodgins finished by banging his hand on the table.

"Have you tested it against Agent Booth yet? If it is on Booth's windowsill then it is probably Booth's sweat," Caroline asked him, looking at him pointedly.

Hodgins straightened up and seemed to falter. It was obvious to Booth that Hodgins didn't know who the sweat belonged to and didn't have anyway to test it.

"No, but I can, I mean, I haven't…but that's not the point! I just need another week, one week, and I can tell you who the accomplice is and then we can nail both of those bastards!" Hodgins said, his eyes looking wild and his body language screamed pain. Booth felt sorry for the guy. It was obvious that Hodgins truly believed that he could find this mystery accomplice that nobody really knew existed. Booth sent Caroline a look telling her to go with him on this one, stood up, and made his way over to where Hodgins was standing, intent on placating the man.

"Hodgins, you know we don't have a week, man. And even if you could find out whom the sweat belonged to there is no other evidence tying that person to the crime. Let's just focus on getting through this trial and then we can worry about figuring out the accomplice, okay?" Both told him as he came around the table to stand next to him. When Booth tried to approach him, he was instantly thrown back. Literally. Looking back, he can't remember why he didn't see him coming; he must be getting old if he let a squint jump him. Booth's jaw smarted where Hodgin's fist had connected with it. Booth stumbled back a couple of steps, raised his hand to his lip to check for blood, and heard Brennan shout "Hodgins!"

"Don't you patronize me, Booth! For all I know, it is the stupid FBI that is causing all the delays in the trial and all the screw-ups that have happened so far. I knew I never should have trusted any of you!" With that, Hodgins stormed out of the conference room, leaving his three co-workers and friends in the room stunned by his outburst.

Brennan was the first to recover and hurriedly made her way over to her partner, who had sat down in one of the chairs after confirming that his lip was indeed split and bleeding. Booth was staring down at the floor, trying not to let Caroline and Bones see the embarrassment of letting Hodgins get him. Unfortunately, Bones had another idea. She placed her hands on his cheeks and directed him to look at her. He studied her face while she studied him. Sometimes, when she was this close to him, he could still pretend that he was in that other place, where him and Bones shared a life together. It had been almost a year since his brain tumor and subsequent coma-dream thing but he still couldn't get it out of his head. In those rare moments when she touched him or when she got that soft look in her eyes when she thought he didn't know she was looking at him, he could almost convince himself that she was as in love with him as he was with her. She was looking intently at his jaw, examining him for any other damage besides the split lip. Booth didn't care how long it took her; he was enjoying the feeling and didn't want it to stop. But all good things must come to an end. Apparently satisfied, she took her hands off his face and gave him a half smile, which he tried to return before remembering his lip, which gave him a painful reminder of it's presence.

"I'm sorry he did that, Booth. It's not your fault. I just wish he could see that too," she told him, still standing very close and bending so that their eyes were level.

"You don't need to apologize for him, Bones. I'm fine. We all have been under a lot of stress the past couple of weeks and if I said that I didn't feel the need to punch something during that time, I'd be lying," Booth told her. Wanting to get past the whole incident, he stood up and said, "Caroline, is there anything else you need from us? If not, I still owe Bones here a trip to the diner for lunch."

Caroline correctly interpreted the look in Booth's eyes telling her to let this one go and nodded. "Go ahead, Cherie. I'll want to see all three of you back here the day after tomorrow to go over your testimony one final time before the trial starts. We need to make sure that we have everything nailed down." Caroline looked at them both before turning and leaving the conference room, briefcase in hand and scowl firmly in place, letting anyone who tried to talk to her know that she was not in the mood.

This time, it was Booth that was ready to get out of there. "Well, Bones, I'm starving. Can we go eat now?" he asked her while trying to give her the puppy dog eyes that he learned from Parker. He was hoping that it worked as well on Bones as it did on him.

She smiled at him. "Okay, Booth. Let's go."

*********

April 23, 2010

FBI Special Agent Seeley Booth's apartment

9:23 pm EST

They were exhausted. Booth looked over at his partner, who had nodded off, her head leaning against his shoulder and in Booth's opinion, looking completely adorable. They had come back to his place with some Thai take out after they had spent the whole afternoon with Caroline going over their testimony for the trial. Hodgins had been absent from the session. They had not seen him since he punched Booth two days ago. They hadn't talked about it even though anyone who looked at Booth could see the evidence on his face that something had happened. And while Angela really looked like she wanted to ask him about it, she used her excellent perceptions skills and wisely kept her mouth shut.

After they had gotten back to his place and ate a little, Bones plopped down on his couch and had been there ever since. When he joined her, he sat down leaving about a foot of space between them, leaving the decision up to her if she wanted to be closer to him. He was just about giddy with happiness when he felt her shift over to him and lean her head on his shoulder, nuzzling into him and closing her eyes. He was going to savor this moment for as long as he could, knowing that when the trial started tomorrow, they would rarely get a minute of peace until it was over.

So when he heard the knock on his door, he was not happy and really considered letting the person think that he was not home. But when the knock persisted, he was worried that it would wale up Bones, who obviously needed to get some sleep. He gently moved her head so that it was laying on the back of the couch and when he noticed he didn't wake her, he got up to answer the door. But he never expected to see the person that was on the other side.

"Hodgins. What are you doing here?"


	4. Chapter 3

A/N: Thanks to everyone for the reviews and the support! My goal is to get 10 reviews per chapter and so far, I have almost met it. This chapter is very fluffy and some of it is based off of my sister's sleep-walking escapades. Intrigued? Read on, enjoy, and please review!

Chapter 3

April 23, 2010

FBI Special Agent Seeley Booth's apartment

8:31 pm EST

"Hodgins? What are you doing here?"

Hodgins could hear the surprise in Booth's voice at his presence and it automatically made him feel guiltier for his behavior two days ago.

"Hey, man. Is it all right if I come in?" Hodgins asked timidly, not yet making eye contact with Booth and shifting from side to side. He had pretty much locked himself in the house for the last two days and really examined his actions over the last several weeks. And when he came up with the final result of his musings, he realized that he had been a complete and total asshole. With all the guilt he was feeling over Booth's kidnapping and the remembrance of the intense feelings he had for Angela, he realized that he had withdrawal into himself so much that he didn't care about anyone else, including the two people that could relate to his situation and he now realized were worried sick about him. Getting ready to come over here, he really looked at himself in the mirror. His hair and beard were both longer since being ignored, he had dark, deep circles under his eyes, he was paler than he could ever remember, and his clothes were hanging on him, looking and feeling like they were a size too big. Now looking at Booth, though, he could see the same changes. Booth's hair was messed up, like he had been running his fingers through it for most of the day, he had a more pronounced stubble than Hodgins had ever seen him wear, his normally immaculate appearance was marred by rumpled clothes that he looked like he had been wearing for days, and he saw the same dark circles that graced his face reflected under Booth's eyes. And while Hodgins was still angry that nobody believed him about the accomplice that he absolutely knew existed, he knew that taking his anger out on Booth and Brennan was not the answer.

Hodgins saw Booth hesitate for an instant and suddenly thought that coming over here was a really bad idea. Booth obviously did not want to talk to him.

"Um, you know what, this was a bad idea. I, um, I think I'm just gonna-" Hodgins started as he backed away from the door.

"No, Hodgins, wait," Booth said, turning to softly close the door behind him. "I just don't want to go inside because Bones is asleep and I'm pretty sure this is the first descent sleep she has had in a couple of days so I really don't want to disturb her. Is it okay if we talk in the hallway?" Booth asked him, making sure to convey to Hodgins that he wanted to listen to whatever he had to say.

Hodgins automatically felt relieved. He nodded to Booth's question and looked down at the floor, noting Booth was still in his socks. "Do you want to put some shoes on or something?" Hodgins said with a smirk.

Booth looked down at his feet. "Naw, it's okay. Did you want to talk to me about something?"

"Um, yeah, I did. I just want to apologize for the other day, when I, you know, sort of took a swing at you. It's just been kind of hard other the last couple of weeks and I guess I just sort of…snapped. And, I'm sorry," Hodgins said, looking anywhere than Booth the entire time he spoke. He didn't want to admit it, but he was nervous about what their resident G-man was going to say. He realized that he was going to need the support of Booth and Brennan's shared experiences with the Grave Digger in order to get through the next several weeks during the trial.

"Don't worry about it, man. The last few weeks have been hell for all of us," Booth said. Hodgins' head snapped up in surprise at the easy acceptance of his apology and was even more surprised to see that Booth was completely genuine.

Hodgins let out a quick breath and continued his shifting from foot to foot. "Well, um, that's great. Thanks." Hodgins didn't know what to say next as an awkward silence settled between the two men. Booth wanted to say something else to him but for some reason, the words escaped him right now.

As both men were thinking of a way to end this awkward moment between them, they heard Booth's apartment door open behind him. Hodgins saw a pair of arms wrap around Booth's waist from behind and heard a very sleepy, "Booth, why are you out in the hall?" that was muffled by her head being buried into Booth's back. Hodgins raised an eyebrow at Booth while trying to stifle to urge to laugh. It was obvious that Dr. B was not quite awake yet.

Booth felt a blush rise on his face at Bones' behavior. He felt her hands rest against his chest as her arms wrapped around him from behind and felt her bury her face between his shoulder blades. He knew that Bones had to still be asleep or had just woken up because he did not think there is any way she would do this if she were awake and cognizant of her actions. But even though he wished this situation happened under better circumstances, he couldn't deny how good it felt for her to touch him so trustingly. He raised one of his hands out of his pocket and placed it over Bones' hand, squeezing it gently. He felt her fingers curl around his hand and grip it lightly. He heard a half cough/half laugh and looked up at Hodgins to see him hiding his mouth behind his hand, a light in his eyes that Booth had not seen in a while.

"Do you two need to tell me something?" Hodgins joked about the public display of affection he was witnessing. He always knew that the partners were close so while this display was not unexpected, it was still really funny to see Booth's unease that this was taking place in the hallway of his apartment building.

Booth tried to give him a glare but he knew his increasing blush counteracted it. "Hodgins, I'm going to get her inside and back to sleep. Do you want to come in?"

"Booth, is that Hodgins? What is he doing here? Did he find the accomplice yet? Hodgins always does really good work, Booth. Really good work," Brennan said, her face still buried in Booth's back. Booth shuddered slightly as he felt Bones tightened her hold around him as he smiled at what Bones said. He looked at Hodgins to see him smiling as well.

"No, it's okay, Booth. I came to say what I needed to say and I think I'm going to go home and get a good nights sleep before the trial tomorrow," Hodgins said in a soft voice, trying not to disturb Dr. B. "See you in the morning?"

"Yeah, see you then. Call me if you need anything before then, ok?" Booth said.

"Will do," Hodgins said, turning around to leave. Right before he headed down the stairs toward the parking garage below Booth's building, he looked back down the hallway at his friends. He saw that Brennan had not released her hold on Booth but he had turned around and now Brennan had her head buried in his chest. Hodgins could see one of Booth's hands at the small of Brennan's back and the other one gently stroking her head. Booth was whispering something to her and he saw Brennan nod her head against his chest. When Booth gently lead her into his apartment and closed the door, Hodgins turned to head down the stairs.

He was glad he came over here. He knew he needed Booth and Brennan's support and was glad that his actions the other day had not caused a permanent rift between them. He definitely felt like a weight had been lifted off of his shoulders and felt a lightness in his step that was not there before. He pulled his keys out of his pocket as he reached the bottom of the stairs and to the door that separated the stairwell and the garage. He opened the door and looked ahead to find his car. But instead of finding his car, all he found was darkness as the last thing he heard was the sizzle of electricity burning his skin.

**********

Booth finally was able to maneuver Brennan on his bed and lying down when she finally woke up. He sat down on the edge of the bed and turned toward her as she slowly came back to herself. She felt warm and safe and did not want to wake up but she was confused. This bed didn't feel like her bed and it smelled like Booth, which wasn't a bad thing but it was different. She could also sense that Booth was there with her, which was definitely different from her apartment. She looked up to see him sitting on the edge of the bed right next to her, one of his hands up by her head and the other one resting on the bed on the other side of her, effectively trapping her between his arm and his body. She turned on her side toward him with her arms drawn up into her chest and felt him tense when her abdomen came in contact with his hip. But instead of immediately jumping back as she had done in the past, she curled herself around him and picked her head up to rest on his thigh just above his knee. She looked up at him to see the questioning in his eyes, asking her silently about her behavior but not daring to move away from her. Instead, he shifted slightly to pick up the hand that was resting behind her back and started to rub her back gently.

She never wanted this moment to end. She knew that this was like the calm before the storm the trial was almost certainly going to bring. She couldn't express in words how grateful she was for Booth's constant support and understanding. Even though she wasn't good with people, she was an anthropologist and was trained to observe changes in people's behavior. And ever since Booth's coma, she had seen a notable change in Booth's behavior. He stared at her longer, touched her more frequently, and was much more protective of her than he was before. She considered herself well versed in the study of human behavior and if she examined Booth's behavior towards her, she would have to conclude that he loved her. While this conclusion would normally cause her to run for the hills, she decided that the prospect of Booth loving her was not scary or disconcerting; it gave her the warm feeling she was currently experiencing. And even though she could not find a scientific rationale for this feeling she experienced when she was around or with Booth, she knew that she liked it and that her liking this feeling might mean the she was in love with Booth. She knew that she loved him; she would do anything for him, but she also knew that there was a difference between loving someone and being in love. All she knew for certain is that she had never felt this way about anyone else before and the intensity of her feelings for Booth were what made her believe that maybe, just maybe, she could lose herself in him for the rest of her life.

"Bones, you okay?" Booth said softly, breaking her thoughts. She looked at him, seeing the affection for her clearly in his eyes and feeling it in his actions. As much as she enjoyed this moment though, she knew that she needed to go home, shower, review her notes, and get a good night sleep before her testimony tomorrow.

She let out a soft sigh and leaned further into his touch. "I'm fine, Booth. Just tired and anxious about tomorrow. I really need to get back to my place, though. Could you give me a ride? My car is back at the Jeffersonian," she said, making sure he could hear the regret in her voice.

She could tell he wanted to tell her she didn't have to go, but she also knew that he respected her wishes enough to do as she asked. She could sense some indecision in him though and started to sit up. She stopped though when she felt him put a hand on her shoulder to halt her movement and when she stopped, he leaned down and pressed a gentle kiss to her forehead. At the contact, her heart stopped in her chest and she closed her eyes, trying to memorize all the feelings that came along with this moment. The moment passed all too quickly though for her liking and when he pulled back, he told her that her would drive her back to her place and he would be waiting for her in the living room. By the time she opened her eyes, she was alone in his bedroom.

Booth cursed himself for his stupidity while waiting for her. What was he thinking, kissing her forehead like that? That was a move for lovers, not partners. He just hoped he didn't freak her out too much. She didn't need anymore stress the night before the trial. He heard footsteps and looked up to see her shyly approaching him. He was happy to see that she didn't look like she wanted to bolt from his apartment as he suspected she might have wanted to do. She picked up her purse from the coffee table as he got his keys from the ledge by the door, silently leading Bones out of his apartment.

They didn't say anything to each other as they descended the steps to the parking garage beneath his building and his FBI issued SUV. Both their minds were preoccupied with what had transpired between them in his apartment. If they weren't so focused on other things, maybe they could have seen what happened next.

April 24, 2010

Location Unknown

10:07 am EST

Whenever Dr. Temperance Brennan woke up disoriented, she knew that it was not a good sign. It usually meant one of two things: one; her liver was currently failing to metabolize the massive amounts of alcohol that she had unwisely consumed the night before resulting in an unproductive morning filled with headaches and nausea or two; she had involuntarily consumed some sort of drug or hallucinogen that was causing her the disorientation. Neither of these were good outcomes as far as Brennan was concerned. As she slowly came back to consciousness, she resisted the urge to shake her head to clear the fog from her brain, knowing that would result in more pain than it was worth. She laid as still as possible as she gathered information about her surroundings. The first thing she realized was that she was laying flat on a cold surface and judging by the tingling sensation in her left arm, she was lying right on top of it. The second was that besides the solitary light bulb shining weakly from the ceiling, there was no other source of light in the room. Deciding it was safe to try sitting up, she quickly turned to rest her back against the wall, momentarily closing her eyes to try and stop the room from spinning. She thought she heard a muffled voice, but the sound of the blood rushing through her head drowned out any other noise. She lifted her hand to her hairline to steady herself when she felt a warm, sticky substance, which she automatically knew, was blood. Definitely have a concussion, she thought, adding the presence of the cut on her forehead and her dizziness together to come up with that conclusion. Opening her eyes again, she glanced at her surroundings, trying to figure out where exactly she was. The room was only about 12 feet by 12 feet and that the roof could not have been more than 7 feet high. Looking around the room, she noticed some bricks, a rake, and a rusty bucket, confirming her suspicions that she was in an old tool shed of some kind. Turning her head slightly to her right, she noticed two lumps in the other corner of the room. And one of the lumps looked very familiar.

"Booth?"


	5. Chapter 4

A/N: Sorry for the wait on this chapter! I have been trying to post it for the past couple of days but was having trouble with the site. Thanks for all the reviews! Met my goal of 10 reviews/chapter and hope to continue to meet it for the rest of the story. Thanks again and enjoy!

Chapter 4

April 24, 2010

Unknown Location

10:17 am EST

Once Brennan recognized Booth's distinct form lying on the ground in the corner of her temporary accommodations, she unwisely forgot her about her concussed condition and tried to rush over to check if he was okay. And even though her intentions were good, when she tried to get to him, her legs crumbled underneath her and she fell down in the same spot that she had woken in; on her back on the cold, hard ground. While trying to regain her equilibrium, she noticed that the other lump rolled over onto his back and let out a groan. Brennan saw the clear blue eyes open and make eye contact with her. Hodgins! Before they could say anything to each other, the muffled talking she had been hearing started again and worried her. She thought that she her Caroline Julian but the voice sounded as if it was far away. Hearing Caroline's voice sparked something in her head, something really important but she couldn't quite place it. She looked around the room once again, trying to see if she had missed something and Caroline was actually in the room with her. Otherwise, the fact that she heard Caroline's voice was not a good sign. She then heard a muffled male voice, one that she couldn't place. How hard had she hit her head? She tried to remember how and why she had gotten here.

"Ms. Julian, Mr. Andrews is correct. Without the testimony of those three witnesses, you do not have a case. I will give you twenty-four hours to produce your witnesses or else I will have to declare mistrial. Understood?"

Now that voice was loud and clear. Brennan had been in enough trials to know how judges spoke and that was definitely a judge. But a judge for what?

"All right, then. We will resume at 10 am tomorrow morning. That's all."

When Brennan heard the bang of the gavel that followed that statement, all the pieces came together and her eyes widened in realization. She looked over at Hodgins and saw that he had heard the voice too and came to the exact same conclusion she had reached a moment ago. The Grave Digger trial had started without its key triad.

April 24, 2010

Outside the Superior Court of the District of Colombia

10:22 am EST

"What do we do now?" Angela said, the anxiety clear in her voice. Her, Caroline, and Cam stood shell-shocked outside the courtroom after receiving the call, trying to figure out how this all happened when the Grave Digger herself has been behind bars in a Federal prison for the past year with no communication apart from her lawyer.

After a minute, Caroline finally broke the silence. "All right, this is what I need from you two. I need whatever is left of the squint squad to comb all three of their places to see if there is any evidence of anybody who wasn't supposed to be there."

"We won't have to go through all three," Angela said suddenly. Cam and Caroline both looked at her, silently asking why. "Brennan told me she was going to Booth's place last night. They were going to go have dinner and go over some of the case stuff one last time before the trial started today. When I called her last night, she was still there. So, we only have to go over Hodgins' and Booth's places."

"We should probably start in the parking garage of Booth's building and the garage of Hodgins' place. It seems that in the last couple of cases, that's where the evidence was because that was where the Grave Digger nabbed her victims. It should help us narrow our search since our timetable is…limited," Cam added to the conversation.

"Well, if you need any warrants or any help from my side of the aisle, let me know. Judge Brewster may be more lenient in issuing orders in this case because of the circumstances surrounding it," Caroline told them, starting to walk away.

"And what are you going to do in the meantime, Ms. Julian?" Cam asked, starting to get her head around the idea that three people she was very close to were reliving the same nightmare over again.

"I'm going to go through all of Heather Taffet's files from when she was a U.S. Attorney to see if I can find anything that may point to that accomplice that Dr. Hodgins kept jabbering about. Call me the minute you find anything that could lead us to their location," Caroline told Cam and Angela as she walked toward her bright yellow junker of a car, swinging her tattered old briefcase in hand. Cam and Angela stared after her for a second before heading off to their own vehicles, intent on getting their friends back.

April 24, 2010

Location Unknown

10:35 am EST

"Dr. B? Is that you?" Hodgins asked what he thought was Brennan, horrified by the way that his voice sounded, like it hadn't been used in months. His head was pounding so hard that he could have sworn that the New York Philharmonic was playing the 1812 Overture in his head, accompanied by Fourth of July fireworks.

"Hodgins, are you okay? Do you remember what happened?" Brennan asked him.

"I remember being attacked by that damn taser again," Hodgins said as he lifted his hand to the back of his neck, confirming his thoughts by feeling the tell tale burn marks there. By the fuzziness of the incident and the slight tremors in his hands, he knew that he had been drugged as well and that he was now coming down from whatever he was given. Deciding that he was going to attempt getting up, he rolled over onto his back. As he did, though, he felt a crunchy sound coming from his pocket and felt something prickle into his skin in the exact same spot.

"What was that?" Brennan asked, her question breaking up the silence that had covered the room.

"I don't know," he said. He reached into his pocket as he sat up, pulling out a piece of white, computer paper, folded in half. He opened it up and saw the phrase "Equal Justice Under Law" spelled out in plain font in the center of the paper.

"What is it, Hodgins?" Brennan asked him. He looked over to see that she had made her own progress, now sitting up with her back leaning up against the wall behind her. She had her eyes closed and Hodgins could see that she had a pretty deep laceration at her hairline that was still oozing blood down the right side of her face. He instantly knew that she most likely had a concussion.

"Um, it says, 'Equal Justice Under Law,'" he told her after a brief period of silence.

"I've heard that before. Isn't it on the Supreme Court House?" Brennan asked him.

"Yeah, it is carved into the western wall." Hodgins studied the piece of paper in his hand. On first glance, there was nothing remarkable about the paper. But when he studied it a little closer, he could see a watermark on the page that he hadn't noticed on his first inspection. He couldn't tell what the watermark said though; it seemed to be some sort of seal but he didn't recognize it. He heard a groan coming from behind him and that was when he took a good look around the room for the first time. That's when he looked behind him and his eyes settled on Booth, lying on his side. From where Hodgins sat he was about 3 feet from Booth's location and about 10 feet from Brennan where she sat against the wall opposite from him. Hodgins could see the burn marks on the back of Booth's neck and that Booth's white dress shirt was torn at the right sleeve by the wrist. He saw that there was another set of burn marks right above the tattoo on the inner side of his arm.

"Looks like Booth really fought back," Hodgins muttered to himself, hoping that the FBI Agent would wake up soon, knowing that it had been awhile since they had been in here.

"What did you say, Hodgins?" Brennan asked him.

"I said it looks like Booth really fought back," he repeated, now examining the room for the source of the voice that both he and Brennan had heard about 10 minutes ago.

"How does he look?" Brennan asked, interrupting his visual search of the room. Hodgins heard the anxiety and pain in her voice at the thought that something had happened to her partner. When he glanced over at her, he could see the worry in her face and noticed that she was wringing her hands over and over again. Hodgins knew that the concussion must have been worse than he thought if it had physically prevented Brennan from rushing to her partner's side, where he was sure that she wanted to be.

"He looks okay, Dr. B. He has an extra set of burn marks on his right arm where it looked like he got tasered again but other than that, I can't see any other marks on him," he told her. "Dr. B, do you remember what happened to you and Booth after I left?"

He saw her close her eyes again and lean her head back against the wall. "I remember being in Booth's apartment and telling him that I wanted to go back to my apartment to sleep for the night. Since my car was still at the Jeffersonian, Booth offered to drive me back to my place. When we got down to the parking garage, I saw Booth go down," she said, as her voice got quieter. "I saw a man holding the taser gun to Booth's neck and I tried to stop him but he had something else in his other hand, a gun I think, and the last thing I remember was seeing it coming toward my face out of the corner of my eye. I think I remember something making him lose his balance because from the injury I have, the force would have resulted in lasting bone and deep tissue damage if it had been a direct hit on my frontal bone, maybe even impacting the suture."

"Dr. B, are you telling me that you have a concussion and you can still figure out how hard you were hit based on bone damage that you don't have?" Hodgins asked incredulous at what she just hypothesized. She gave him a look that said 'Not everyone can do that?' which caused Hodgins to chuckle under his breath.

"Bones?"

***********

"Bones?"

The first thing he was aware of was what he couldn't tell where Bones was and that always worried him. The second thing he was aware of was the pain in his wrist and the back of his neck. The pain was very familiar and could only mean one thing; the Grave Digger kidnapped him. Again.

"I'm here, Booth. I'm over here," he heard Bones say; relieving his worry that she may be dead or gravely injured and making him worried at the same time. Even though he was happy to hear her voice, he was not happy that she was stuck in the same situation that he was. He was still confused about what exactly happened and where he was. He wanted to get up and rush over to make sure that Bones was okay but he knew at this point that if he didn't get up slowly that he would probably regret it. So he started by rolling over onto his back, careful to keep his head as still as possible. Surprisingly though, he found this move fairly easy and it gave him the confidence necessary to try and sit up. This, however, proved more difficult.

"Whoa, there, Booth, take it easy. Let me help you up," Hodgins told him as he felt the bug man's hands steady him against his back. He gave a quick nod of appreciation over his shoulder as he closed his eyes for a minute to regain his balance. It took him less time than he expected, confirming his original thought that he thankfully did not have a concussion. When he reached up to rub the back of his neck, though, he discovered the reason why his wrist hurt. Staring at his right inner arm right above his tattoo, he saw in burn marks from the taser gun. It was red and raw and Booth could feel it throbbing in time with his heart. His attention was drawn away from his arm when he felt Hodgins get up and start to walk around their temporary prison. When Booth finally felt good enough to move again, he looked up to try and find his Bones. He saw her leaning against the wall and while he was relieved that he did not have a concussion, he could quickly tell that his partner did. He saw her leaning with her back against the wall and felt his heart rate increase when he saw the cut on her forehead. Slowly getting to his feet, he stumbled over to her and before he fell down, he parked himself right next to her, his shoulder leaning against hers as they sat against the wall. Booth nodded again at Hodgins' worried glance in their direction and saw as he resumed his pacing around the room.

Booth looked at his partner. She had her eyes closed and Booth knew that he needed to get her up if she was sleeping. She once ice-skated with him for hours after his concussion to make sure that he didn't go to sleep. It was one of his favorite memories of them. And while there was not an ice rink around, he knew that he now needed to be the one to keep her awake. He softly nudged her shoulder with his own.

"Bones? Are you awake?" he said in a soft voice, hoping not to startle her. He saw her open her eyes and blink a couple of times as she came back to her surroundings. She turned to him and smiled with tired eyes. Booth raised his left hand to inspect the area around the gash on her head. He saw her flinch when he touched the outer edge of the gash and he dropped his hand immediately, not wanting to cause her anymore pain. As he dropped his hand, he felt her settle against his shoulder, effectively leaning her body against his own. He scooted a little closer to her, making the space between them the size of half of a grain of sand. Touching her had always calmed him down in the past. That was why he was constantly putting his hand on the small of her back when they were walking somewhere or touching her arm whenever they were doing paperwork together. He felt the effects of her touch instantly as his heart rate decreased and the churning in the pit of his stomach also calmed down a bit. Looking over at her, he would like to think that the worry lines now absent from her forehead was because he had the same effect on her.

"So now that everyone is awake and semi-conscious at least," Hodgins said as Booth sent him a glare at his remark. "Let's see if what we have and if we can start to work out where we are."

"Good idea, Hodgins," Bones said as she began to turn out her pockets. As she reached down, her hand brushed against Booth's thigh. He started a little at her touch but managed to keep his breathing under control. She didn't seem to notice as she reached into her other pocket to see if she had anything that could help. Booth took a page out of her book and did the same.

When they had gathered everything in a pile between them, they had a Swiss army knife, a penlight, a pair of black rubber gloves, three sets of car/house keys, three busted cell phones, two wallets, and the contents of Bones' purse, which included a bottle of water, a little sewing kit, and a tape measure. After examining the items they had in their possession, Booth broke the silence.

"Okay, what do we do now?"


	6. Chapter 5

A/N: Thank you to everyone who reviewed the last chapter. I didn't get the 10 reviews I was hoping for but hopefully this chapter will get 10 reviews! I am not an electrician so I took some creative license in this chapter to make the story work. I apologize for any inaccuracies in that regard. Thanks for reading and enjoy!

Chapter 5

April 24, 2010

Parking garage of FBI Special Agent Seeley Booth's building

11:45 am EST

"Give me an update, people. Has anyone found anything?" Cam shouted, the echo in the parking garage helping her voice carry throughout the space. She was not used to working with these FBI forensic techs and she suddenly saw why Dr. Brennan was always complaining about their lack of communication in the field. They were professional but lacked the silent understanding of crime scenes that the Jeffersonian lab techs possessed. If she were truly honest with herself though, she knew most of her attitude about the techs wasn't that she didn't like them, it was that they weren't Dr. Brennan, Dr. Hodgins, or Seeley Booth.

"We haven't found anything yet, Dr. Saroyan. We have examined the area around Agent Booth's car and now we are moving to the area around the door to the stairway," one of the techs told her. She nodded to them, unsatisfied by their progress. They had already been down here for an hour and they had yet to find anything that would help them figure out where Brennan, Hodgins, and Booth were. The shrill ringing of her phone startled her and she saw some of the techs jump at the sound as well. She quickly removed her gloves and reached into her pocket to answer, hoping that someone had so good news regarding this mess.

"Dr. Saroyan," she answered.

"Hey, Cam. It's Angela. I think I have something from the security tape in Booth's building that should help to narrow down the search," she heard through the phone and waited for Angela to continue. "From the tape, at around 8 pm last night, Hodgins arrived and went into the building. Approximately five minutes after he arrived, a white van pulled into the parking garage and parked a couple of spots down from Booth's car."

"Can you get a license plate number?" Cam interrupted, already walking over to a couple of spots to the right of where Booth's car still sat, trying to see if she could find any evidence in that area.

"Unfortunately, this person seems to have known where the camera in the garage was because he parked just out of range of the camera to catch the license plate. About ten minutes after the van pulls in, someone gets out. The only thing I can tell from the tape is that this person is male and around 5'10"."

"So it definitely can't be Heather Taffet then?" Cam asked.

"Nope, not this time. He is wearing all black and has a ski mask on in the video. He positioned himself right outside the door from the stairwell to the parking garage. When Hodgins came down, the man managed to take him down with what I assume is a taser but it is hard to tell. He managed to drag Hodgins back to his van and put him in the back. Now, this is where the tape gets interesting."

"Interesting, how?" Cam asked, still looking around the area where the van was parked last night. On the face she couldn't see anything but some tire tracks. She silently waived over some FBI techs and pointed to the tracks she wanted them to examine, all while listening to Angela's analysis of the security tape.

"When he was loading Hodgins in the back of his van, something spooked him. His hand went up to his right ear, almost like he had some sort of cell phone in his ear under his mask. I enhanced the image and even though the quality is not great, you make out the image of an earpiece under the ski mask," Angela told Cam, whose mind was now whirling a mile a minute with the implications the ear piece could bring.

"What happened next Angela?" Cam asked as she was surrounded by techs, taking pictures and looking around the area for any clues.

"He left the back of the van open and ran to the door. He just about made it when Booth opened the door. The perp managed to tase Booth on the arm, which incapacitated him momentarily. But Brennan went to Booth's aide right away so he got a gun out from his ankle holster and hit Brennan on the right side of her head. After Brennan went down, Booth went after him and managed to get a few good hits in before he was tasered on the neck and finally went down. The man then dragged Brennan first, followed by Booth, in the back on the same van before he drove away. Now, I don't want to tell you how to do your job, Cam, but I were you, I would call Ms. Julian and tell her to get some agents to Booth's building and start asking some questions of his neighbors," Angela finished.

Cam was silent for a moment, trying to absorb the information Angela told her. Suddenly, what Angela was implying struck her like a ton of bricks.

"You think someone in Booth's building was helping the Grave Digger's accomplice, giving him cues for when Hodgins, Brennan, and Booth would be coming down to the parking garage?" Cam asked over the phone, already knowing the answer.

"I think that is exactly what happened," Angela confirmed.

April 24, 2010

Location Unknown

12:30 pm EST

After about an hour of brainstorming, they still had not come up with a way to get themselves out of their current situation and Brennan knew that their frustrations were beginning to get the best of them.

"Hodgins, what do you have in your hand?" Booth asked. Brennan looked over to see him playing with the piece of paper that he found in his pocket when he woke up.

"I found it in my pocket. It says 'Equal Justice Under Law.' I don't know why though," Hodgins told him.

"Hodgins, let me see that piece of paper," Booth said, reaching toward it but refusing to leave his place at Brennan's side.

"There's a watermark on the paper, some sort of seal, but I have never seen it before," Hodgins told him as he got up to hand the paper to Booth. Brennan watched the exchange through hooded eyes, her concussion making her just want to sleep even though she knew she needed to stay awake.

She looked over Booth's shoulder as he examined the piece of paper in his hands. She saw the watermark as well but like Hodgins, had never seen it before. But she automatically knew that Booth had seen it before as she felt him tense next to her.

"What is it, Booth?" Brennan asked him as she uncrossed her arms and laid a hand on his bicep, squeezing it lightly to convey her support for him. When he looked up at her, she saw the betrayal written across his face.

"You know what Hodgins, you are a pretty bad conspiracy nut if you can't recognize this seal," Booth said humorlessly. At Hodgins' look, he continued. "This watermark is on all the paper used in the FBI HRT."

Brennan saw Hodgins eyes widen and his mouth fall open. Brennan was confused. Why did this seem to have such an effect on both men?

"I don't know what that means," Brennan told the both of them.

"It stands for FBI Hostage Rescue Team, Bones," Booth told her without recrimination.

"It is an elite FBI unit," Hodgins continued. "Its members could be anyone in the FBI and they are chosen for their background and experience." Hodgins paused for a moment, furled his brow and seemed to be concentrating on something. "Booth, how do you know that this seal is used on the paper?"

Booth looked at her while he gave his answer. "That unit was the reason I was recruited into the FBI when I left the Rangers." She could tell that he was watching her for any signs that she was displeased with his past. She stared him right in the eye, unflinching, and hoped that it was enough to show him that she did not care about anything that he had done in his past, that she valued his friendship and partnership. He gave her a soft smile and she felt overwhelming happiness that she had succeeded.

"So this means that whoever kidnapped us was or is a part of that unit?" Brennan asked, unknowingly asking the question that everyone was contemplating.

"That's exactly what that means, Bones. And we have to figure out a way to tell the rest of the squint squad so they can figure out how to get us out of here," Booth said, leaving everyone to process this new piece of information on their own.

"What about using the cell phones to send a short message? Isn't that what you guys did last time?" Booth proposed, cutting into the silence that had previously occupied the room.

"If we had a power source, we might be able to do that. Me and Booth's phones are pretty messed up but Dr. B's might be able to send a short message. Is there a power source in the room that we can use?" Hodgins said. Brennan knew from years of working with Hodgins in the Jeffersonian that he was thinking out loud, as he called it, more than asking her or Booth if they actually knew of a power source. And while the practice seemed absurd to her (why would people need to talk out their thoughts instead of simply analyzing and rationally working out a problem in one's own head?), she understood that it helped Hodgins so she didn't comment on it further.

"Bones, you awake?" she heard Booth ask. She hadn't even noticed that she closed her eyes until he nudged her and asked that question. When she opened her eyes, she saw his troubled face and saw the concern for her condition plainly in his dark expressive eyes. Ever since he had woken up, he had not left her side and even though he was trying to hide it from her, Brennan knew that he was constantly looking her over and trying to discern how she was doing. She knew him well enough to know that he thought she would be angry at him for constantly checking on her but it comforted her. It had been so long since someone was kind to her like he was and since someone cared about her like he did. She told him during her toast to Jared and his new fiancé that she now believed in love and since then, she had noticed a difference in the way he touched her, like he was trying to convey to her that he believed in her ability to love too. And even though she desperately wanted to trust her gut when it came to her thoughts about Booth's love for her, she needed some sort of tangible sign from him; some tangible evidence in the form of words. Because in the academic world of research that she had spent her entire adult life in, you either published or perished. And even if your ideas were groundbreaking and life changing, if they were not written down, they did not exist.

She smiled softly at him, trying to calm him down and reassure him that she was okay. "I'm awake, Booth. Just needed to close my eyes for a minute," she old him. She saw that he appreciated the effort but did not believe a word of what she just told him. He just nodded at her and continued to look around the room, trying to help Hodgins find the power source that they needed to try and make the phone work. Suddenly, she heard a metal clattering coming from the corner of the room. She saw Hodgins get the bucket that was in the corner and turn it upside down in the center of the room right under the light bulb. He stood on the bucket and tried to reach the bulb but it was little to far out of his reach.

"Explicate your process, Hodgins," Brennan said after watching him fail to reach the light bulb on successive tries.

"This is an old light fixture, probably from the turn of the century but with a modern light bulb. That means that the engineers would have had to use wires to make it work with the old infrastructure. I'm thinking if we could unscrew the light bulb, we could access the wires and try connecting it to the phone so we could send a message, but I am too short to reach it. Booth, could you come over here and try?" Hodgins said. Booth started to get up, intent on seeing if he could reach the bulb, but Brennan stopped him by tightening her grip on his arm. He stopped and looked at her with a questioning look on his face. One major problem with this idea came immediately to her mind and she was not comfortable sending Booth to do this before she heard everything in Hodgin's plan.

"Hodgins, how do you expect to use the wires when you can't turn off the power to the bulb? Anyone who tried that would be electrocuted," Brennan said. She saw Booth look to her and then toward Hodgins, looking to him to verify what she said.

Hodgins sighed and Brennan knew she was right. "What I was hoping was that we could disconnect the wires from the base of the bulb and that would prevent any electrocution."

"But then won't we be in the dark?" Brennan continued.

"We have a penlight and while I know that it is not a very strong light, this is not a very large space. It should provide us just the amount of light that we need."

"I'll do it," Booth said. Brennan snapped her head in his direction, not wanting him to do something so dangerous.

"Booth, what?" Brennan started.

"Bones, this is the only way. We need to let them know what is happening. We will need their help to get out of here," Booth told her. She heard the absolute conviction in his voice and knew that nothing she could say would stop him. She nodded at him quickly and let go of his arm with on last squeeze. He walked over to the bucket and stood on top of it, reaching the light bulb easily.

"Here, Booth," Hodgins said as he handed him his jacket. "Use this to unscrew the light bulb so you don't hurt your hand." Brennan watched as Booth took the jacket and slowly started to unscrew the light bulb from it's socket. She held her breath and tensed with every twist Booth's wrist. She heard Hodgins release a breath and she released her own as she saw Booth completely unscrew the light bulb and slowly step down from the bucket with the bulb in his hand, carefully watching the wires to make sure that he had enough slack on them.

"Whew, okay Booth. Now take the Swiss army knife and carefully disconnect the wires from the base of the bulb. It should pop off fairly easily but be very careful," Hodgins told him. Brennan watched as Hodgins discreetly take the wooden handle of the rake in the corner in his right hand. Brennan nodded at him, approving of his actions. If someone was being electrocuted, the best way to safely get that person away from the electricity was to use wood. That way, the both people were not electrocuted.

Booth, however, did not seem to notice this as he was intently focusing on the job at hand. He had the light bulb cradled carefully in his left hand and picked up the Swiss army knife with his right hand. Brennan held her breath again, tensing as Booth picked out the knife from the tool and disconnected the first wire without incident. Brennan closed her eyes for a moment before feeling the tension rise in the room again as Booth started to remove the next wire. He shifted the bulb to his right hand to get a better angle and pick up the knife in his left hand. She saw him put the knife at the base of the wire and then saw her world crash down around her.

"Booth!"

************

When he woke up, he felt a deep throbbing in his left thigh just above his knee. He didn't remember hurting himself. The last thing he remembered was being in that basement with Bones and Hodgins. He felt something on his head soothe him and his head was laying on something soft and warm whereas the rest of his body was cold and uncomfortable on what felt like hard cement (or concrete as Bones would correct him). His curiosity about his surroundings and wondering where Bones was made him finally open his eyes.

"Hodgins, he's waking up," he heard Bones whisper and felt his pillow shift at the same time. He looked up into Bones' crystal blue eyes and realized that his head was resting in her lap and that her fingers were softly combing their way through his hair in a gentle, relaxing motion. He deduced from the look in her eyes and the worried expression on her face that their experiment with the light bulb did not go well for him.

"Bones," he said, disturbed that his voice sounded like he had been grinding his vocal cords against sand paper. "What happened to me?"

She looked down at his thigh before replying to him. "When you shifted the bulb to get the second wire, the first wire shifted and landed on your thigh, electrocuting you. Hodgins was able to hit it away from you with the wood before it did any permanent damage but you still got a bad burn from it. Can you feel the rest of your leg, Booth?" Bones questioned.

The tone in her voice scared him. He slowly tried lifting his left leg up and felt screaming pain rip down his leg to his toes almost immediately. He bit his lip to keep himself from screaming and shut his eyes.

"Yep, Bones, I can definitely feel the rest of my leg," he said when he could trust his voice to be under control again. He re-opened his eyes to see Bones nodding at him sadly and she started stroking his head again to calm him down. And it really worked.

He turned his head slightly in Bones' lap and her hand followed him, never stopping its motion. He saw Hodgins working with Bones' phone and the wires he had disconnected from the bulb.

"Is that going to work, Hodgins?" Booth asked. Hodgins looked up and Booth saw the guilt on his face. Booth wanted to tell Hodgins that it wasn't his fault; that he couldn't predict what would happen to him but knew they would not have any effect at this point. He knew that Hodgins needed to focus on getting them out of this situation before he could deal with what just happened.

"Yeah. We will have less time to send the message than before but I have a message that only uses six keystrokes. I was able to get out eight last time so hopefully this will work too," Hodgins finished. Booth tried to sit up but felt Bones hold him back down. He looked at her, surprised by her actions.

Looking in her eyes, he saw that she needed him to stay for her own comfort as well as his own. He knew how much it cost her to admit that so he stayed exactly where he was and let her comfort him.

"Okay," Hodgins said after about 5 minutes of silence. "I'm ready."

Booth watched as Hodgins turned on the cell phone and began to punch in the message. But what really distracted him was a clicking noise that wasn't present until the cell phone was turned on. It was the same sound that was made when your cell phone got too close to some speakers and the electronic interference got in the way. The sound stopped when the cell phone shorted out. Booth felt Bones' hand pause on his head as they waited for Hodgins assessment.

He turned to them and said, "Well, I think it worked. But did anyone else hear that clicking sound?"

April 24, 2010

Jeffersonian Medico-Legal Lab

3:14 pm EST

Angela went over the video from Booth's parking garage for what seemed like the one-hundredth time that day but she still hadn't come up with anything outside analysis she had given Cam this morning. She felt absolutely worthless. She wanted so badly to be of more help but she didn't know what else to do. So, she looked at the tape again, trying desperately to find something that would help.

When she heard her cell phone ring, she sighed, knowing that she needed a break but not wanting to give up. She put the controller of the Angelator down and walked over to her phone. When she looked to see who sent her the text, she was shocked to see Bren's name on the screen. She immediately looked at the text.

"FBIHRT" was all it said. What on earth does that mean, she thought.

Her phone ringing in her hand startled her so much that she almost dropped it. She saw Caroline's name on the caller ID and quickly answered the phone.

"Ms. Julian! I just got a text from Brennan. It said 'FBIHRT.' Do you have any idea what that means?" Angela said frantically.

There was a pause on the other end of the line.

"You'd better get down to the Hoover, Cher. Dr. Saroyan just called and with the information you and her just gave me, I think we may be able to nail this son-of-a-bitch."

A/N 2: So does anyone think they figured it out yet? ; ) Let me know what you think!


	7. Chapter 6

A/N: Thanks for the response to the last chapter. I really appreciate all the reviews. This may be the last chapter for about a week because I have two midterms next week but I think this one should be able to hold you over until then. As always, please review! I am so close to meeting my goal of 10 reviews per chapter. Enjoy!

Chapter 6

April 24, 2010

Location Unknown

4:02 pm EST

He had spent the last fifteen minutes looking for the source of the clicking noise. Hodgins was convinced that it was caused by electrical interference because there was another source of power in the room. He looked over to where Booth and Brennan sat. Brennan was still sitting against the wall, looking down at Booth, who was still lying down with his head in her lap. Hodgins could tell the man was in pain; the way his entire body was tense spoke volumes about his condition. His eyes were closed but instead of being relaxed in sleep, it looked to Hodgins that Booth was just closing his eyes to keep Brennan from truly seeing what kind of pain he was really in. Brennan, meanwhile, continued to stroke her fingers through his hair, which looked like the only thing that was keeping Booth from breaking down completely. Hodgins knew the feeling. When he was pulled out of that car when he was kidnapped by the Grave Digger the first time, the only thing that kept him grounded was Angela's touch. He never told him this but going home with her that night saved his life. She kept her promise; every time he woke up with a nightmare and thought he was buried alive again, she was there, holding him and telling him that everything was okay.

"What do you think it means?" Booth suddenly said, still not opening his eyes. Hodgins looked over at him and saw him shift further into Brennan's touch, as if that statement that zapped his energy and he needed her in order to re-fuel.

"What are you talking about, Booth?" Brennan asked him. Not sure if he was supposed to participate in this conversation, Hodgins kept shining the penlight into every area of the room that could hold the source of the electrical interference.

"'Equal Justice Under Law'," Booth said. "What do you think it means?"

That same question had been bugging Hodgins since he had found the note in his pocket. He knew just from living in Washington D.C. all these years that the phrase was carved into the western side of the U.S. Supreme Court House. But, being the conspiracy theorist he was, he knew the blueprints of all the influential buildings in Washington D.C. (just in case they happened to be of Mason design), including the Supreme Court House, inside and out and it has cost him a pretty penny to do it. Hey, he wasn't spending the Cantiliever money on living expenses, so why not indulge a little? And since he knew about the Supreme Court House, he knew that there was not a basement in that building that matched the dimensions of the room that they were currently in.

"It's on the western side of the U.S. Supreme Court House, Booth," Brennan told him a soft voice. Hodgins couldn't tell if she was using that voice to soothe Booth or if it was because of her own concussion.

"Bones, do you know what time it is?" Booth asked.

Brennan didn't have a watch but Hodgins watched as she tenderly picked up his left wrist with the hand that wasn't occupied stroking his head to glance at the watch that he wore.

Hodgins was not offended by not being included in their conversation. It was not uncommon for them to have their own conversations even if the entire squint squad was gathered around at the diner. Everyone who worked at the Jeffersonian was pretty such used to their private conversations, whether they be verbalized or communicated through a series of looks.

"It's about 4:15, Booth. The trial started around 8 hours ago," Brennan told him. She didn't let go of his left hand though, instead deciding to hold onto his hand. Booth returned the gesture and curled his fingers around her hand. And that was when Hodgins put the pieces together.

"The trial!" Hodgins shouted, startling both Booth and Brennan. "Dr. B, do you remember when we first woke up and we heard the voice saying that the trial had been delayed for 24 hours?"

"Yes. That was when I realized that the trial had started without us," Brennan told him, her eyes narrowing in concentration. Hodgins could tell that the concussion was slowing her down and he could also tell that she was NOT happy about this.

"'Equal Justice Under Law'! Why didn't I see it before?" Hodgins said, now pacing back and forth in the small space.

"Hodgins!" Booth interrupted. "Not all of us, and by us I mean me, have genius level IQs. Would you mind explaining what the hell you are talking about?"

Hodgins stopped his pacing to look over at them. Booth had finally opened his eyes and the both of them were looking straight at him.

"Okay," Hodgins started, trying to calm himself down enough to explain his reasoning to his friends. "When I turned on the cell phone to send that message, we heard the clicking sound that is usually caused by electrical interference, like when you bring your cell phone too close to a speaker system. Now, I know that I was a little out of it when the voice spoke this morning but it was very loud and clear, like the judge was in the room with us," Hodgins paused, making sure that they were still with him before he came to his conclusion. "I think that we are underneath the courthouse where the trial is being held and that there is a speaker system in this room so we could hear everything in the trial that we ere supposed to testify in."

Silence fell over the room, blanketing its three occupants. Hodgins could feel his heart beating fast in his chest, the adrenaline generated from his discovery making him want to do a million push-ups or run three miles.

"I think you're right, Hodgins," Brennan finally said. "It makes perfect sense. And I think I know exactly where the microphone in the courtroom is placed."

"Where, Bones?" Booth asked, turning to look her in the eyes. Even though that he shouldn't have been surprised that Brennan was three steps ahead of him, Hodgins thought that maybe, just this once because of the bump on her head, he could have figured it out before her. Guess not.

"Before Hodgins woke up, I heard Ms. Julian's voice and a man's voice that I couldn't recognize but they were very, very faint and almost indistinct. But then when the judge spoke it was clear and I could hear every word that he said. The judge in every courtroom I have ever been in has a microphone at their desk. I think the receiver for the speaker is in the microphone that the judge has."

Hodgins sat back to think about this theory and knew it was most likely right on. That spot would be perfect because no one would even think to check there for anything abnormal.

"Hodgins, let me ask you something. Do you believe Bones' theory?" Booth asked him, trying to sit up again. Hodgins smirked as he noticed Brennan discreetly pushing him back down. Booth blushed a bit and gave Brennan a look. Brennan played ignorant though and continued to hold him.

"Yeah, Booth, I do. Why?" Hodgins asked.

"Do you think if we were to find this speaker that we could reverse engineer it so that we could send a message?" Booth asked.

Hodgins thought for a moment before he replied. "I'm not sure that we could send a voice message but yeah, I think if we found it we could disrupt the signal somehow so that the person sitting at the microphone would notice something." As Hodgins finished, he noticed a smile forming on Booth's face. "Why, Booth? What are you thinking?"

"I'm thinking that Judge Brewster served in the Navy during Vietnam and I have never met a squid that couldn't recognize SOS in Morse code."

**********

April 24, 2010

J. Edgar Hoover FBI Building, Office of Caroline Julian

6:37 pm EST

When Angela arrived at Caroline's office, she knew that she was extremely late. The traffic on the Mall was outrageous and even though the Jeffersonian and the Hoover wee not far away, there was a presidential motorcade going through there and traffic had come to a complete standstill. Angela saw Cam was already sitting in her office, staring off into space and bouncing her leg up and down rapidly. Angela was surprised to see that she was alone though.

"Cam, where is Ms. Julian?" she asked, dropping herself into the other chair that was across from Ms. Julian's desk.

"She is with Agent Perotta interviewing Booth's neighbor," Cam told her, still staring off into space, which Angela was surprised at.

"Booth's neighbor? Cam, what happened?"

Cam finally looked at her and Angela could see the exhaustion clear in Cam's eyes. "After you told me that you thought that one of Booth's neighbors might have been involved in the kidnapping, I called Ms. Julian right away, who said she was going to get a warrant to search the financial records of everyone in Booth's building to see if this cooperation could have been financially motivated. And they got lucky. A man that lives down the hallway from Booth, who just happens to live right across the hall from the stairwell, had a deposit of $10,000 in his account last week. When the agents went up to his place to question him, he got very nervous so they brought him here. Ms. Julian and Agent Perotta have been questioning him for about half an hour," Cam finished with a sigh.

Angela silently nodded at Cam's explanation. She sensed that something else was going on with her boss but wasn't quite sure if it was her place to say something.

"It's a good thing they found that deposit too. Because we spent four hours in that garage and we didn't find a shred of evidence. It is almost like this person knew exactly what we would look for and covered up their tracks entirely," Cam said, the bitterness evidence in her voice.

Now Angela understood. Cam had been a cop. And when she thought that there was a dirty law enforcement agent involved in any of their cases, she got as angry as Booth did. She considered it a stain on her profession and took it very seriously and very personally.

"You think someone in the FBI was helping Heather Taffet," Angela stated, already knowing that she was right. She saw Cam snap her head up at her, looking her in the eyes.

"I don't want to think that, but yeah. This seems a little too perfect, from the staying out of the range of the surveillance camera to not leaving a trace in the garage. And, if the message from Dr. Brennan means anything, I would hazard a guess that this person was apart of the FBI Hostage and Rescue Team at one point, which makes this whole thing harder to swallow. Don't ask me how they could have figured that out though," Cam said.

Angela knew there was nothing she could say that would make this situation better so she just remained silent, being supportive through her presence more than anything else. Right after she had hung up with Ms. Julian, she immediately tried calling Brennan back but it went straight to voicemail.

They sat there silently for about five more minutes when Ms. Julian and Agent Perotta came through the door, with Ms. Julian going right to the chair behind her desk with Agent Perotta hung back, choosing to lean against the door of the office inside of venturing too far inside.

"Well, people, we now have a main suspect in this case," Ms. Julian told them. Angela's heart rate increased and she felt hopeful for the first time in a day. Maybe this nightmare was almost over, maybe they could find them before the night was over and they could go back to normal in the next couple of hours. Although Angela knew this was improbable, the internal optimist in her wanted to believe that this could happen. This incident had affected her as well. She couldn't stop thinking about Hodgins, hoping that he was okay. She was so scared for him that first night after his first kidnapping and she knew that even though they weren't together anymore, she would be there for him if he needed it.

"Who is it?" Cam asked, suddenly leaning forward in her seat. Angela mirrored the position, waiting on baited breath for the name.

"Former FBI Agent turned general contractor Harrison Sanders. The agent that was originally assigned to the Kent kidnapping who worked closely with Ms. Taffet before he left the FBI and someone who Booth and Brennan interviewed during their original investigation."

A/N 2: So did anyone think it would be him? If you can't remember who he is, re-watch "Aliens in a Spaceship." He is in the first ten minutes of the episode and I always thought that there was more to him. Thanks for reading and don't forget to review! : )


	8. Chapter 7

A/N: So I know I said I wouldn't be able to post for a week and I still have two midterms next week, but this chapter wouldn't leave me alone. Thanks for all the reviews so far. I was only one short of 10 for the last chapter! They really do make my day and inspire me to type faster. Thanks again and enjoy!

Chapter 7

April 24, 2010

Location Unknown

8:18 pm EST

They had been searching for the speaker for hours with no luck. Well, Booth thought, if he were to say that more accurately, Bones and Hodgins had been searching for hours while he sat against the wall and offered what support he could. He was so relieved when he was Bones able to get up and start walking around, even if she needed the wall's support every once and awhile to stay up right. And even though it was much darker in the room since they had to unscrew the light bulb to send the text message, it seemed to help Bones' concussion, the lack of light lessening the severity of her headache. If they didn't find the speaker in the next 15 minutes or so though he was going to have to insist that they take a break. While his primary concern was for Bones, he also knew that Hodgins was about to collapse as well. He had been going non-stop for about 4 hours now and Booth knew that they couldn't handle any more injuries. They needed all three of them in order to get out of this mess and Booth was going to make sure that they were all in the best shape possible.

He, on the other hand, was definitely not in the best shape possible. He wasn't going to tell Bones this, but ever since he had woken up, he felt numbness and tingling all along his leg from his injury down to his toes. And while he knew that this couldn't be a good sign, he also knew that there was nothing they could do about it now so there was no use in just making Bones worried. He was equally worried about her and her concussion so he figured that they were even in the worry department. After watching her stumble for the fourth time in as many minutes, Booth decided to make them take a break ahead of schedule.

"Okay, guys, enough for now. Let's take a break," Booth told them. The fact that Bones just nodded and sat back down next to him made him realize that he had made the right decision. Hodgins, however, wasn't going down without a fight.

"Booth, we need to find this speaker. It is the only chance we have of getting out of here," Hodgins said, still not sitting down. Bones had rested her head on Booth's shoulder, exhausted from her stint standing up and looking for the speaker. Booth scooted as close to her as possible, trying to support her.

"There is nobody even up there right now, Hodgins, it's almost 8:30. Take a seat for a little bit. We all need to rest," Booth told him, his tone leaving no room for argument. Booth knew he succeeded when he saw Hodgins' shoulders slump a little bit and then he finally nodded. So they could all see, Hodgins put the pen light down in the center of the room with the light bulb facing toward the ceiling. This made the room glow in a soft light and if Booth didn't know the about the bad situation they were in, he could have sworn it was romantic.

Booth felt Bones shift against his shoulder, nestling closer into him and closing her eyes. Booth knew that he needed to keep her awake but also knew that even before she got the concussion, she had to have been exhausted. She was not sleeping well in the last couple of weeks because of the anxiety surrounding the trial. They would frequently stay late at each other's apartments under the guise of doing paperwork but they each knew that the real reason was that they didn't want to be alone. Neither of them ever brought up the real reason why they were spending so much time together. It just sat between them, both of them agreeing on an unspoken rule to not bring it up. Just like another thing that had happened between them that was probably keeping her up at night as well.

About two months ago, he had read a very interesting book. He loved to read but normally stuck to either Bones' books or something by Tom Clancy, but his motivation for reading this book was different. This book was by Sweets and it was about him and Bones. Even though the book was an easy read because he already knew the content, the conclusion was something that he knew but couldn't confront yet. The night after he finished, he couldn't sleep knowing that Bones had read the same book. He was so afraid that she was going to run away from him that he shut down before even knowing her reaction to the ending, too afraid that it was going to hurt too much for him to survive. So when he showed up to the therapy session the next morning, he was shocked to see her sitting in Sweets' office waiting for him to show up. She wanted to talk about the book but it was too late. He had already shut down on the topic. He didn't want to hear what Bones had to say because he was terrified that her response was going to be that she didn't love him back. He would rather have the status quo than her not in his life at all. So that's where they were stuck, in this awkward area between partners and lovers. And while this trial had brought them closer together physically and emotionally, they still hadn't discussed anything related to Sweets' book. They still hadn't discussed the fact that they were in love with each other.

"Booth," Bones said softly.

Booth shook himself out of his thoughts. "Yeah, Bones."

"I'm unsure if this is just my concussed mind misinterpreting visual stimuli, but I think I see something where the light bulb used to be," Bones told him. Booth looked over at her, seeing her eyes fixed very intently on one spot. Following her line of vision, he gazed up at the hole in the ceiling where he had unscrewed the light bulb. At first, he couldn't see anything and thought that maybe Bones was losing it. But after a moment, he saw it too. When Hodgins had placed the penlight in the center of the room and shined it at the ceiling, part of the beam hit a spot inside the hole that the light bulb was in where Booth now saw a glint of something metal. A smile spread across Booth's face as he realized that this is what they were looking for.

"Bones, you're amazing."

"Why is Dr. B amazing?" Hodgins asked, looking up to where Booth and Bones were looking.

"She found the speaker," Booth said. "Well, actually Hodgins, you're placement of the penlight found the speaker but Bones was the first one who saw it."

Hodgins scrambled to his feet and looked to where the light beam was shining. Booth, still smiling, looked down to where Bones was still laying her head on his shoulder. He was surprised when he met her eyes and not the crown of her head. She had a soft smile on her face that he liked to think was reserved only for him. And while her blue eyes were somewhat muddled by her concussion, he could still read the message in them loud and clear. Temporarily forgetting his surroundings, he leaned toward her, waiting for her to back away if she didn't want this. When he saw her quickly lick her lips, he was done for and started to lean in all the way.

"I see it! Oh, Dr. B, you ARE amazing! Booth do you think you could stand for reach it?" Hodgins said. Booth silently cursed his weakness and focusing on the situation at hand. He thought he saw a brief flash of disappointment in her eyes as he looked to Hodgins, who just raised his eyebrows at both of them.

"Yeah, I can try," Booth said, not completely confident that his leg would support him. Bones, sensing his internal debate, put her arm around his waist and began to help him up. He gave her a brief nod of thanks and threw an arm around her shoulder to take some of his weight off of her. With her assistance, he managed to hobble over to the bucket, alarmed that he still hadn't regained full sensation in his leg. Once he was back up on the bucket again, he felt Bones' hands on his waist, anchoring him but at the same time, distracting him as well.

"Hodgins, can you hand me the penlight?" Booth asked, reaching out his left hand for the light. He felt the weight in his palm and brought the light source up to the hole in the ceiling without ever taking his eyes off the goal. Reaching in, he grasped the end of the speaker, gently trying to pry the object loose from its position. He felt it dislodge and began pulling it out, bit-by-bit, afraid to pull hard and break or damage their only hope at freedom.

April 24, 2010

J. Edgar Hoover FBI Building

9:52 pm EST

It was late and the Hoover building was empty, save for the people currently huddled around a desk in Caroline Julian's office. They had scoured every document, trying to find out where their suspect could be. They had tried his work but he had already gone home for the night so they were currently working on a residence for him but the more they looked, the more they knew that something was suspicious about him. Caroline had never had such a problem locating one person's address before. This was the Federal Bureau of Investigations for crying out loud and they couldn't locate one address for a former FBI Agent. And she was getting pretty damn frustrated at how good he was at covering his tracks.

"Anyone find anything, yet?" Angela asked the group. Cam didn't even acknowledge that she spoke, Perotta nodded in the negative, and Caroline just sighed. It was time for some more coffee.

Walking toward the break room, coffee cup in hand, Caroline thought back to the day's events. She so thought that they were going to get to the trial intact. She saw the strain that the trial had put on Brennan, Booth, and Hodgins and felt guilty for pushing as hard as she did but she had no choice. She would do whatever possible to make sure that Heather Taffet spent the rest of her life in prison. And a horrible, federal, maximum-security prison at that.

On her way to the break room, she saw a conference room light on down the hallway. Wondering whom else could be here that late, and wanting to satisfy her curiosity, she set down the hallway. She guessed she shouldn't have been surprised that the young psychologist was occupying the space, files spread out all over the table and a pin board filled pictures and maps his only company. She was surprised when she heard that Dr. Sweets was not going to be at the trial this morning but she also knew that he did have other clients and other responsibilities to the FBI and he said that he had a full calendar today. When she left the courthouse this morning after setting the game plan with Angela and Cam, she called Sweets to let him know what happened but couldn't reach him and ended up leaving a voicemail. Still, though, it made her curious to his presence here tonight.

"Dr. Sweets?" Caroline said as she knocked on the glass door of the conference room. She saw the young man jump at her entrance, obviously not expecting anyone to be in the building. As he turned, she noticed that his toe was undone and his jacket was on the back of one of the chairs.

"Ms. Julian, I didn't hear you. How is everything going?" Sweets asked her.

"Not good, Cherie. We have our suspect but we can't figure out where he lives currently. He is very good at covering his tracks," Caroline told him, a scowl on her face.

Sweets gave her a small smirk that made her confused and quite frankly, a little pissed off. If the boy genius didn't come up with something to back up that smirk, she was tempted to smack it right off of his face.

"I may be able to help out with that, Ms. Julian," Sweets said, hurrying over to the pin board that was at the end of the room. Frowning, Caroline followed him but without the youthful enthusiasm that Sweets displayed. After all, she still hadn't gotten her coffee yet.

"I ran into Agent Perotta earlier and she filled me in on your progress, or lack thereof, I should say. So I started looking at any similarities between Ms. Taffet and Mr. Sanders, seeing if somehow, they were linked. Both not married, worked for government agencies but I was curious to how they could have kept in contact and worked together even after Mr. Sanders left the FBI. Now, they worked a string of cases together in the early 90's and started working together exclusively on the Grave Digger cases in '95. Now, even though they both had good close records outside the Grave Digger case, Mr. Sanders suddenly left the FBI in 1998, claiming that the stress of the job was too much for him, went into general contracting, and besides developing a drinking habit, has lead a fairly boring life. Pays his taxes on time, volunteers at a retirement community, and hasn't even had a parking ticket," Sweets said, gesturing wildly at all the documents on the board.

"Sweets, if you don't tell me something soon, I am leaving. I am not properly caffeinated for this conversation," Caroline warned him.

"Okay, okay," Sweets said. "Now, the only time I can't account for in all this history is exactly one month in 1998, a few weeks after he left the FBI."

"One month?" Caroline asked, now intrigued.

"One month. Now, right before he left the FBI, Mr. Sanders requested a new Social Security card for his maternal grandfather who apparently misplaced the card in a move to a retirement home. Because of his status as an FBI Agent, the application was granted without any investigation. But when I typed in the name of the man he requested the card for, I discovered that that person died in 1985 in a house fire in Seattle, Washington. This person's same was William Burton."

"William Burton?" Caroline asked, the name sounding vaguely familiar but she couldn't place it.

"The same William Burton that Heather Taffet married for exactly one month in 1998 before the marriage was annulled. The same William Burton that Heather Taffet married in order to create the entire false identity to rent the storage container in Spring Hill," Sweets finished as Caroline hurried to the phone on the conference table, dialing her office phone number.

"Dr. Saroyan, it's me. Start looking up any housing records in Washington D.C. since 1998 under the name of William Burton. Sanders and Taffet created their false identities together. If we find where William Burton is living, we will find Harrison Sanders."

A/N 2: So it's all beginning to come together. What did you think? I'd love to know!


	9. Chapter 8

A/N: Sorry for the delayed update. Between two midterms, two part-time jobs, my birthday and other assorted events, I have had little time for writing. But we are almost at the end of this one. Please let me know what you think and review! I would love to break eighty reviews on this story.

Chapter 8

April 25, 2010

District of Columbia Jail

7:01 am EST

The first thing she noticed after the glaring lights had been turned on, the not so subtle sign that it was morning and time to rise, was the coolness of her cell. Even though late April in Washington D.C. brought lots of humidity and warmth, this weather had apparently not made it into the jail. Still, it was better than the maximum-security prison she had spent the last year in. At least here, she had a small window that let in some natural sunlight and she could at least hear other people talking, even if it wasn't to her. But as she awoke today, something besides her location was different. She was smiling.

Because today was the day that Heather Taffet knew she was going to be able to walk away from all of this. For when her trial was going to be declared a mistrial in about three hours due to the sudden "disappearance" of the three key witnesses, she was going to walk out of that courtroom and onto a plane, bound for somewhere that did not have an extradition agreement with the United States.

April 25, 2010

J. Edgar Hoover FBI Building

7:34 am EST

They were all exhausted. They had spent all night looking for Sanders, finally finding a William Burton living in Falls Church, Virginia. Sweets didn't go to the house, but he heard that when the FBI Agents got there, they found him passed out on his couch with two empty handles of Crown Royal on the floor by his hand. That was 6 hours ago and they were still waiting for Sanders to sober up enough so that they could talk to him. Sanders was currently in an interrogation room, one hand handcuffed to the chair he was sitting in. He had his head down on the table, snoring pretty loudly, much to the disgust of the two agents standing in the room with him, standing guard. Sweets was watching him from the other side of the two-sided mirror, studying him like a predator would study its prey. He was anxious for the chance to go in with Agent Perotta and get inside his head, hopefully enough so to find out where he had put Booth, Brennan, and Hodgins. Sweets looked up at the banana bag the nurse had started on Sanders when he came in this morning, seeing that it was almost gone. Any minute now, Sweets thought. Knowing he would be notified when Sanders was awake, he went to join the others.

They had somehow gravitated to Booth's office during the night, setting up their headquarters around his office. Sweets knew that psychologically it was a way for them to feel connected to their friends even when they weren't with them. He brought some coffee with him when he went into the office. Cam was sitting behind Booth's desk at his computer. She had not stopped working throughout the night, constantly pushing them to work as hard as they could. Angela was asleep on the couch, curled up underneath an afghan that Booth kept over the back of the couch. Perotta was at the table with all of the files spread out in front of her, silently preparing, like Sweets had, for when Sanders was ready. Caroline had left for her own office about two hours ago, claiming that she needed to go over the trial notes more carefully, just in case they couldn't find them in time and needed to find a way to stop the trial from ending before it began. They were all consciously aware of the fact that the trial started again in two and a half hours whether the witnesses were there or not.

The shrill ring of a cell phone startled everyone in the room. Perotta got up and walked out of the office to answer the call. Sweets silently took her seat, reviewing the files that she had been going over.

"So what do you think Sweets?" Angela asked him, now sitting up and awake on the couch. "Are you going to be able to crack him?" Sweets could read the hope in her eyes, the hope that they would be able to get through to Sanders and get their friends back, hopefully in one piece. Sweets tried to school his features, hoping that Angela couldn't read in his face that he thought the Taffet and Sanders operated under the same pathology; that most likely, Sanders wouldn't give up a thing and that Hodgins, Brennan, and Booth were going to have to find a way out of this mess on their own. Sweets opened his mouth, about to reassure Angela when Cam interrupted him.

"Save it Sweets. We don't need you to patronize us. We all know that Sanders isn't going to talk," Cam said, the bitterness and disappointment clear in her voice. Angela turned her head toward Cam, disillusionment and fear in her eyes. Sweets acted quickly, trying to restore some hope to the artist.

"With respect, Dr. Saroyan, you don't know that. Maybe his inebriated state will lead him to say something that he wouldn't in normal circumstances." Cam just shrugged before going back to the computer screen. Angela got up and stretched, going to look out the window, watching as the city woke up to approach a new day.

"Dr. Sweets," Perotta said she as re-entered Booth's office, putting her cell phone back in it's clip. "Sanders is awake."

The dynamic in the room changed instantly with those words. Everyone tensed for a moment before Sweets finally nodded, picking up a file that he wanted to bring with him in the interrogation room. Cam and Angela also headed for the door, only to be stopped by Perotta before getting the chance to leave.

"Whoa, where do you two think you are going?" she asked as she her hand up in the classic "stop" sign. "Just because Booth sometimes allows Squints into the interrogation room does not mean I am willing to do the same, especially after the experience I had with Dr. Brennan last year."

"We want to watch," Angela said. Sweets saw Perotta examined the ladies determined looks, seeming to gauge their seriousness. After making a decision, she walked over to Booth's computer and pulled up a screen that was streaming from the interrogation room. They could see that Sanders was awake and now making lewd gestures to the guards standing behind him.

"This will give you real-time audio and visual from the interrogation room. This is the best I can offer you," Perotta told the ladies. Sweets watched as Angela and Cam accepted this compromise and Angela pulled another chair over to behind Booth's desk. Perotta nodded to him as they walked by, and Sweets followed her out of Booth's office and down tot eh interrogation room, hoping against hope that he would somehow be able to help their friends.

April 25, 2010

Unknown Location

8:12 am EST

Brennan was absolutely exhausted. She could try and calculate the last time she slept but her brain was currently not functioning at its optimum capacity, a combination of the aforementioned lack of sleep and her concussion. But Booth (damn him) had made certain that she didn't fall asleep last night and if he wasn't injured, Brennan would have slapped him to stop the inane chattering he kept up to keep her from falling asleep.

After they had found the speaker in the ceiling, Booth was able to ease it out from it's location. He was able to pull out about 3 feet of cable that looked like a black, coiled snake before there was resistance and since they were all worried about displacing the receiver on the other side, he stopped at that. Hodgins and Booth had spent the next four hours looking over the end of the speaker, trying to expose the appropriate wires to try and send a message. They finally accomplished this task at about four in the morning and even though there was no way to test whether or not it worked for certain, they seemed content that it would when the time came. Which, according to Booth's watch, was going to be in about two hours.

She was currently trying to tune out Booth and Hodgins, who were talking about some game with a ball. Football, baseball, basketball, something like that; she could never keep them straight. All she really wanted to do was get some sleep and even though she knew that she shouldn't because of the concussion, at this point, she didn't care. Hoping that Booth was distracted enough to not notice her eyes closing, she subtly leaned her head back against the wall behind her and closed her eyes.

"Hey, Bones. Wake up," she heard Booth say and felt him poking her in the calf, which was the only spot he could reach from his position. She opened her eyes to glare at him, which made Hodgins chuckle. Brennan then turned her glare at him, which made him shut up.

"Booth, why can't you just leave me alone?" Brennan grumbled, kicking her leg out to stop him from poking at her. She saw him snatch his hand back but failed to feel bad about it.

"Geez, Bones I was just trying to help. You wouldn't let me fall asleep that night my head was all messed up. Just returning the favor," Booth said as he moved to be next to her again. "I would never forgive myself if something happened to you that I could prevent, Bones," Booth told her, more quietly this time. She turned to look her head to look into his eyes and saw the truth written there. Once their gazes locked, they couldn't look away from each other, getting lost in each other's eyes. After a moment or two, they heard a cough.

"If you two could hold off on doing your whole eye sex thing until I'm not in the room, I would really appreciate it," Hodgins said, earning the glare of both of them this time. After giving them a short nod, Hodgins looked away and pretended to be busy again.

Brennan could no longer keep her head up and leaned it against Booth's shoulder, scooting closer to him.

"Bones," Booth said, a warning in his voice to say awake.

"Booth, I'm not going to go to sleep. I just need something to lean my head against and you are more comfortable than the wall, so stop squirming and let me lean on you for once," Brennan told him, snuggling closer into him but having trouble because his right arm was in the way of truly becoming comfortable. Booth solved the problem for her by wrapping his arm around her shoulder and pulling her against him so her head rested comfortably on her chest. She sighed; settling in and keeping her eyes open to satisfy Booth. She saw Hodgins look at them out of the corner of his eye and after being the recipient of Brennan's glare for the third time in 10 minutes, Hodgins wisely turned away and started fidgeting with his jacket.

It stayed quiet between the threesome for a couple moments, until it got too quiet. Brennan sat up and saw Hodgins and Booth looking around too.

"Please don't tell me that was what I think it was," Booth said, not removing his arm from around her yet.

"If you think that the sudden quietness in the room is due to that fact that the ventilation system has just shut off and we are now cut off from a supply of oxygen, then unfortunately Booth, I think you are right," Brennan told him, their gazes locking once more. Only this time, instead of affection, his had regret written all over them.

April 25, 2010

J. Edgar Hoover FBI Building

8:30 am EST

Sweets was right in saying that Sanders inebriated state would cause him to say things that he normally wouldn't. Unfortunately for Sweets and Perotta, this currently meant singing a horribly off-key version of "99 bottles of Beer on the Wall." Perotta was getting frustrated; Sweets could see it in her posture and facial expressions. And his suspicions were confirmed by her next actions.

She reached across the table and slapped him a couple of times across the face, not hard enough to lead a mark, but hard enough to get him back to reality. He startled and looked at them, seemingly for the first time. His brown hair was greasy and looked like it hadn't been washed in the last couple of days. The beard growth also confirmed that suspicion, along with the smell of sweat and alcohol. All that combined in the tiny interrogation room lead to a nauseating stench. Sanders moved his gaze from Sweets to Perotta a couple of times before laughing, a sick hysterical laugh.

"You know, Mr. Sanders, we already know that you were the one that kidnapped Dr. Hodgins, Dr. Brennan, and Agent Booth. We were just hoping that you would want to make it easier on yourself and tell us where they are now. That way, you could plead to a lesser charge of kidnapping instead of conspiracy AND kidnapping once the clock strikes 10 am and the trial begins again," Perotta told him.

Sanders just looked at them and laughed again.

"What time is it?" Sanders slurred, trying to use the hand handcuffed to the chair to rub his face. Sweets almost laughed at the confused look on Sanders face when he couldn't figure out why his hand wasn't moving the way he wanted.

"It's 8:31 am, Mr. Sanders," Sweets told him after looking at his watch. "Why does that matter?"

Sanders looked at them with a smirk on his face. "Because that means that one minute ago, your friends lost their oxygen supply. And according to my calculations, they will be dead in two and a half hours. Just enough time for me and Heather to get on a plane." Sanders stopped for a moment, looking around the room. "So, I'll tell you what. Because I'm a nice guy, once we are on that plane and out of American airspace, I'll let you know where they are. If you get me to the airport fast enough, you may just be able to save your friends."


	10. Chapter 9

A/N: Thank you to everyone who has reviewed so far. I was waiting to post this chapter to see if I could get 80 reviews first but finally decided to post it. I hope you are still interested and are surviving the BONES hiatus intact. Thanks and please review. Still looking to get 10 reviews per chapter!

Chapter 9

April 25, 2010

Location Unknown

9:22 am EST

According to Hodgins' estimation, they had been without oxygen for about an hour and a half now. He could feel the effects already, making him believe that they maybe had a couple of hours of oxygen left at most. While he could mostly still think clearly, he could feel a heaviness in his limbs that he knew was evidence of an anoxic event. The slight tingling in his limbs were a constant reminder of the dilemma they were currently facing, although sometimes during this past crisis, he felt like he was facing it alone. Booth and Brennan had tried to include him in their conversations but he knew that they didn't understand that when they got into one of their little "moods," they communicated everything through their eyes. Hodgins' didn't even know if they didn't realize they were not speaking out loud. It made him smile. Angela had been going on since the very beginning about those two getting together, even when they hated each other. Hodgins couldn't help but see that they had a connection that was outside of their partnership. Hell, it was hard to miss. He looked up from where he had been staring at his hands for the past couple of minutes to look upon the objects of his thoughts. They were sitting together, huddled against the opposite wall. Hodgins doubted they had been more than two feet apart during the entire time they had been in this room. Now, there was barely a hair's breadth between them. Booth sat with his legs stretched out in front of him, absent mindingly rubbing his injured one from time to time. His left arm was around Brennan's shoulder, his hand softly stroking over her biceps whenever it looked like she was going to fall asleep. Even though Hodgins knew that the lack of oxygen was going to affect her more than Brennan falling asleep with a concussion, he also knew that Booth was going to do everything to protect her until they breathed their last breath. Which, Hodgins thought morbidly, would probably be within the next hour or so. If their friends didn't find them first, that is. She was leaning against him and her knees were pulled up into her chest but they were shifted to rest lightly against Booth's thighs. Her head rested in the spot between his shoulder and neck. If Hodgins didn't know better, he could have sworn that they had been lovers for a while; the familiarity of their positions indicated more than "just partners." But even though that is what they always claimed, everyone who knew them knew better, knew that their closeness would someday lead them to something more.

It had been very quiet since the oxygen had shut off. None of them felt the need to say anything. What was there to say? Hodgins couldn't stop thinking, a problem with being a genius. He kept going over all of the possibilities in his head, trying to think of another way to get some more oxygen in the room or even if there was another way to get out of here. He had considered looking to see if they could use the air vent as an escape route but after a quick calculation of their sizes relative to the vent, he quickly ruled that out as a possibility. The only way he figured they could get out of here was if someone took out the door that was currently wielded shut.

He thought about taking the note that he found in his pocket earlier and one of the pens and writing another note. But that just made him depressed and made him think back to the last time he was kidnapped by the Grave Digger. He started to feel the crushing claustrophobia that usually accompanied any thoughts about that incident. He closed his eyes, trying to block it out of his mind but he couldn't stop the shiver through his body.

"Hodgins, are you ok?" Booth asked him. Hodgins cursed under his breath, the hope that his companions didn't notice that moment of weakness suddenly vanishing into the increasingly thinner air of the room. He looked up to see Booth and Brennan looking at him, Brennan looking confused about why Booth was asking the question.

"Yeah, man. Just a little cold," Hodgins said. Booth nodded, even though they both knew it was a lie. If anything, it had become more hot and stuffy in the room since the ventilation had shut off.

"What time is it, Booth?" Hodgins asked, desperately trying to change the subject.

Booth briefly removed his arm to check his watch. Hodgins smiled as he saw Brennan's look of displeasure when she felt Booth's arm lift from around her shoulders. The look, however, quickly disappeared when Booth settled his arm around her once more.

"It's 9:35, Hodgins. We have about 25 minutes until the trial starts up again and we try our little plan," Booth said, voicing their plans out loud. They had decided during the night that at 10 am, when the trial was supposed to start again. If their theory was correct, and the other end of the speaker was attached to the trial judge's microphone, if were going to tap the message "SOS" into their end of the speaker that Hodgins had reverse engineered, hopefully sending the signal that the judge would interpret. Booth would then spell out in Morse code that they were under the courtroom. Now, all of this hinged on the fact that even after they typed the message in, that Judge Brewster remembered enough Morse code from his days in the Navy to interpret them and then send someone to find hem before their oxygen completely ran out. They all thought that this might be a long shot, but they didn't have another option at this point.

It took a lot for Hodgins not to get frustrated at their current situation. Even in the last ten minutes, he could feel the oxygen levels drop further. The tingling in his limbs was more pronounced and he knew that his respiratory rate had increased as well as his lungs were trying to pull as much oxygen into his body as possible to counteract the rising levels of carbon dioxide circulating in his blood. He just hoped that they all were still conscious when it was necessary to send their message.

April 25, 2010

J. Edgar Hoover FBI Building

9:39 am EST

"What do you mean there is nothing more we can do to him?" Angela asked, her voice pitch rising as she spoke. Cam was still seated in Booth's chair behind his desk, silently seething at the computer screen, which still showed Sanders sitting in the chair, smiling smugly. She hadn't felt this angry at the system since her days as a cop in New York City. She looked up at Sweets and Perotta who were still standing in the doorway, looking exhausted from the hour-long interrogation that yielded no information other than their friends no longer had an oxygen supply.

"I'm sorry, Angela," Sweets started. "But Sanders and Taffet both have the same pathology. They want to control the game and don't care about the players, just as long as they achieve their final goal. We are not going to get any more information out of him about the whereabouts of Dr. Hodgins, Dr. Brennan, and Agent Booth."

There was a moment of silence in Booth's office as they absorbed this latest setback in the case. Cam felt like they had all the pieces but for some reason they were unable to put them together in a puzzle that made any sense. She had been around for all the Grave Digger kidnappings that involved her people and she was getting really, really annoyed with them. She was very protective of her people, as a boss and as a friend. And she was sick and tired about having to worry about them getting kidnapped and dying.

"I think we should get over to the courthouse," Cam said, standing and walking toward the door.

"Shouldn't we stay here and see if we can find anything else?" Angela said, the distress becoming clear in her voice. Cam knew that she was having a hard time with this. She had to watch her best friend and her former fiancé be buried alive again and this time, Booth being involved only made it worse.

"I think that Dr. Saroyan is right, Angela. I have a theory that Sanders and Taffet have some sort of psychological connection to the courthouse. Sanders seemed very focused on 'walking out of the courthouse,' so much so that he repeated it several times when we were talking to him," Sweets said. "I think that in order to find something else to help the case, we need to be at the courthouse."

Cam was just about to leave the office when she heard Caroline.

"Come on, Cher. We have a trial to win. I don't intend to intend to let either of these two freaks fly away to some island in the Pacific."

Cam looked towards Sweets and Angela before taking a breath and squaring her shoulders, ready to face whatever else this nightmare of a case was going to throw them.

April 25, 2010

Location Unknown

9:52 am EST

Booth's eyelids felt like that had cement blocks attached to them and he was having a hard time trying to keep them open. He knew that the decreasing oxygen was making him tired and he could feel Bones against him nodding off even more than before. He was desperately and selfishly trying to keep her awake. He didn't think he could live with himself if he felt her fall asleep against him, never to wake up again. He would die with her if that happened. Feeling her head droop against his shoulder again, he rubbed her shoulder with his hand, startling her awake.

"Bones, you need to stay awake," he whispered to her, subtly pulling her closer to his side.

"I'm just so tired, Booth," he heard her say, the exhaustion clear in her voice. The arm that she had draped against his abdomen tightened around him and Booth knew that he would have to keep working to make her stay awake.

"I know, babe," he said, the term of endearment slipping out. "But you need to stay awake for a little while longer. We are almost out of this, Bones. Just please, please stay awake a little longer," Booth told her, not caring about the pleading tone in his voice. He felt Bones pull away from him slightly, just enough to look him in the eyes. In that moment, Booth put everything he felt for her in his expression. He needed to make her understand the depth of his unspoken feelings for her, to make her see his love for her. He would do whatever it takes to keep her alive and out of harms way, even though currently, harm was staring them in the face. As Booth gazed into her eyes, he also saw love, devotion, and caring in them. In that moment, his heart rate increased and Booth knew if had nothing to do with the thinning air around him. He felt her hand leave his stomach and raise up to cradle his cheek in her hand. He leaned into her hand as he felt her thumb tenderly caressed his cheekbone. They were still staring at each other and Booth saw her eyes leave his to drop down to his lips. His tongue involuntarily licked his lips to moisten them and he saw her give him a small smile as she leaned in to lightly touch her lips to his. It was just a whisper, just a fraction of a second, just enough time to get used to the feel of each other's lips, but to Booth, it was a moment of absolute perfection. The feel of her hand against his cheek and her lips against his was something he was never going to forget as long as he lived, not matter how much more time that life contained. As she pulled back, their eyes connected again, communicating all the thoughts that the kiss confirmed and solidifying their love for each other. Giving him one last caress to his cheek, she removed her hand.

"I think it's time Booth," she said. Booth nodded to her and started to get up from their place at the wall to get to the center of the room where the speaker sat. Hodgins looked up and nodded to him as they all huddled around him. He felt Bones put a hand on his back, moving it slightly back and forth to reassure him. Hodgins handed him a quarter, the instrument he would use against the exposed wire.

Booth took a deep breath and started to tap out the message.

. . . _ _ _ . . .

April 25, 2010

Superior Court of the District of Columbia

10:00 am EST

Judge William Brewster took his seat behind the bench, wary of what another day of this trial would bring. He had spent all night wondering if the three key witnesses against the defendant were below ground somewhere, suffocating to death. Now staring out into the gallery of the courtroom that was still standing, waiting for his permission to sit down, he was worried that his suspicions were right when he didn't see the witnesses in the courtroom and their friends looked like they had not slept in 24 hours.

"You may be seated," he said. The courtroom sat down.

"Your honor, I request an immediate mistrial. The prosecution has failed to produce their witnesses and without them, they have no case."

Judge Brewster sighed, knowing this was coming but really not wanting to hear it. He glanced over at the defendant and it made him sick to she the pleased look on her face. He had been a layer for 25 years and a judge for almost 15 and even he had to admit that this one made his stomach turn.

"Ms. Julian? Is he right?" Brewster asked the prosecution. The look Caroline Julian gave him told him everything he needed to know before she even opened her mouth.

"We do no have the witnesses, Your Honor. But that doesn't mean- "

"Ms. Julian, be quiet," Judge Brewster suddenly said, raising his hand to further emphasize his point.

"Excuse me, Your Honor," Ms. Julian said, an offended look crossing her face.

"Does anyone else hear that?" the judge asked. He was hearing a faint tapping noise but couldn't make out where it was coming from. The tapping was very familiar though. He looked out in the gallery, seeing two women and a young man sitting behind Ms. Julian come to the edge to the edge of their seats, clearly interested in what was going on. The courtroom had turned silent, everyone except for Ms. Taffet interested in what was going on. And it was finally quiet enough for Judge Brewster to figure out where the noise was coming from. Picking up the microphone from the desk, he held the base up to his ear. Ignoring the confused looks coming from he gallery, he listened closely to the tapping.

"This is an SOS signal," Judge Brewster announced to the courtroom, looking at the panicked face of Ms. Taffet. "Someone is sending us a distress signal."

A/N 2: So, what did you think? Will they find them in time? Let me know!


	11. Chapter 10

A/N: Thanks everyone for all the reviews! I appreciate the feedback. We are almost at the end of our story but we are not quite there yet. Please enjoy and let me know what you think!

Chapter 10

April 25, 2010

Superior Court of the District of Columbia

10:09 am EST

After figuring out that there was additional tapping coming from the microphone, the judge ordered the courtroom cleared of all non-essential personnel. Angela could feel her heart beating out of her chest. She knew that the tapping had to be from one of them, she just knew it! She was currently chewing on her fingernails and walking back and forth in front of the bench where the judge and the bailiff were listening to the Morse code still coming from the bottom and writing it down on a piece of paper. She couldn't believe that she was the only one who looked nervous. How on earth did the rest of them seem so calm? Angela was convinced that if this continued any longer that she would not have any fingernails left. The words that Sanders said kept reverberating in her head, about how her friends did not have much oxygen left. She wondered if it was true. They left him sitting in the FBI interrogation room, with Agent Perotta there in case they had to transport hi to the airport at the last minute. Angela wasn't ready to give up on them finding her friends though. Looking over at Ms. Taffet, still sitting behind the defense table, Angela couldn't help but want to hit her and wipe that smug smile off of her face. She couldn't help but think that the guards that were standing behind the table were more for Ms. Taffet's protection from the people currently gathered around the prosecution table or if they were making sure that she wasn't going to try anything.

"Hey David, please listen to the rest of the message while I go talk to these people about what is going on," Angela heard Judge Brewster tell the bailiff as he walked down from the bench and toward the prosecution table where her, Caroline, Cam, and Sweets were sitting. Taffet and her defense attorney were at their table, with the guards standing behind her to make sure that she didn't try anything during this recess. Angela looked up toward the bench and saw David writing down more words. What was he transcribing, War and Peace? They didn't have that much more time.

"Ok, so here is what is going to happen," Judge Brewster said as he stood in the middle of the two tables. "Someone is going to tell me right now why the hell there is a distress signal currently being transmitted through the bottom of my microphone and they are going to tell me right now."

Silence followed the judge's statement as everyone avoided looking at each other, trying to figure out what to say. Angela tried to catch Cam's eye, looking for any signal as to what she was going to do. After another moment, Angela decided to talk herself.

"It is probably coming from the three key witnesses that are missing, Your Honor," Angela told him. "Do you remember yesterday when my cell phone rang in the gallery during the beginning part of the trial?" The glare from Judge Brewster confirmed to her that indeed he remembered when her cell phone rang in court. "Well, anyway, that call was from the Grave Digger, informing me that Dr. Brennan, Dr. Hodgins, and Agent Booth had been buried alive."

"Do you still have that message?" Judge Brewster asked her.

"Your Honor," the defense attorney said, standing up and stepping closer to the judge. "I object to the listening of this message. It has not been verified and it could unfairly be used against my client."

"Shut up, Bill," Caroline said, finally speaking up. "This is so not about your client any more."

"She's right, Bill. Anything said here will not be used in the trial. This is about finding out what happened to those three witnesses, regardless if Ms. Taffet had anything to do with it," Judge Brewster said. Angela threw a glare in Taffet's direction, trying to get a one up on her at every opportunity.

After listening to the message and how her, Cam, and Caroline spent the last 24 hours, the courtroom became quiet again. Judge Brewster seemed to be thinking over what had just transpired. Angela didn't blame him. If she had just heard that story, she is not sure if she would have believed it. It definitely sounded like a pretty tall tale when she heard it said together in sequence like that.

"Um, Judge Brewster," David said. They all turned to look at the bailiff, who was still sitting at the bench but had put down the microphone. "I got some of the message. According to what I was able to transcribe from the Morse code message, they are located somewhere underneath this building."

"Underneath the building?" Angela asked. Could it be possible that they were in a hole dug somewhere underneath the courthouse.

"They are probably in one of the basements. This building was built back when the city was originally constructed and there are some basements down there that haven't been used in years. I used to work as a maintenance guy here and could lead you down there if you like," David finished.

"Why did you just get some of the message?" Cam asked, narrowing her gaze and suing the same tone she used when Hodgins was trying to convince her to let him do one of his experiments.

"Because the tapping just stopped, in the middle of a word." Angela gasped, her hand rising to her mouth as the silence in the room now matched the silence coming from the end of the microphone.

April 25, 2010

Location Unknown

10:18 am EST

"Booth, are you okay?" Brennan asked him. He had just stopped tapping out the message with the quarter but Brennan wasn't sure if it was because the message was finished or if it was because of the thinning air. If she believed in G-d, she would be praying that it was the first of those two options. But her rational mind quickly dismissed that thought as she saw the signs of hypoxia, or lack of oxygen to the rest of the body. She saw the shaking in his hands, the blue tint to his lips, the increased respiratory rate, and all of these signs indicated to her that the love of her life was dying. She slowly rubbed her hand across his back, waiting for him to come back to her. His eyes were closed and Brennan saw him leaning over slightly to facilitate better breathing. Brennan looked over at Hodgins to see him breathing hard as well but Booth was definitely feeling it the most of out the three of them, most likely because he was bigger than the two of them. Booth hadn't answered her yet and she patiently waited and continued to rub his back with her hand.

After a minute, in which he still couldn't catch his breath, he turned to her and gave her a strained version of his charm smile, obviously trying to reassure her but it didn't work. She could feel her throat close up and her eyes start to water as she looked at her best friend struggling to take a breath. She knew that he didn't have a lot of time before he passed out and then took his last breath. She met Hodgins' eyes over Booth's hunched form and he nodded to her after flicking his eyes down to Booth. She nodded back and put her hand on Booth's shoulder, slightly squeezing it to get Booth's attention.

"Let's go, Booth," she whispered to him. The fact that he just nodded and followed her back to their spot against the wall really worried her. As they made it back to the wall, even that little bit of exertion had worn him out and he was breathing even harder. Brennan sat back against the wall and stretched her legs out in front of her. She took Booth by the shoulders and gently pushed him down until he was lying down with his head on her lap. Her breathing was labored by this point as well and she had trouble catching her breath. Hodgins was leaning against the wall as well, and Brennan could see him starting to have trouble as well. There would be no carbon dioxide scrubber this time, no using the airbags to blow them through the roof to freedom, and no Jared to get her on a helicopter to save them either.

She started slowly running her fingers through Booth's hair, memorizing the feeling of being with him. She gazed down into his soulful brown eyes. He was trying to keep his eyes open, fighting a losing battle with his body to stay conscious. She knew that once he fell asleep, unless they miraculously got some more oxygen, he would never wake up again. He gave her a weak smile and Brennan could see him struggle to stay awake. She gave him a watery smile in return and leaned down to softly kiss his forehead.

"It's okay, Booth," she whispered to him, continuing to run her fingers through his hair. "Just fall asleep."

He gave her a slight nod, which she felt against her thighs more than saw, and watched him close his eyes, his respiratory rate slowing even further. Brennan felt a solitary tear run down her cheek and fall onto his shirt, right over his heart. She looked over at Hodgins' who was leaning heavily against the wall, gave her a strained smile, and closed his eyes as well. Brennan took one last look at the man peacefully lying in her lap, before closing her eyes herself and drifting off to sleep.

April 25, 2010

Superior Court of the District of Columbia

10:35 am EST

There was only 25 minutes left. Heather Taffet knew that by now, the lack of oxygen in the room would have made them lose consciousness and it would be only a matter of time before they took their last breath. And it would only be 20 minutes until, in their desperation; the prosecution came to her and begged her for the location of Booth, Brennan, and Hodgins. She looked back at the guards that would soon be escorting her to a plane with Sanders. Heather sat back in her seat and smiled. It would only be a matter of time, after all.

April 25, 2010

Underneath the Superior Court of the District of Columbia

10:37 am EST

Cam, Angela, and David had been running throughout the basement of the courthouse, throwing open all the doors, hoping to find Booth, Brennan, and Hodgins. They had been to five doors so far and all of them were unlocked. Cam was beginning to think that David had translated the message wrong. Caroline had stayed upstairs with the other radio, ready to call paramedics if they were needed, and Cam thought that at this point they were definitely going to be needed. With only 23 minutes left to the deadline, Cam knew that their condition would not be good. Angela went ahead of her, running down to a door on the left hand side that was almost directly below the courtroom the trial was being held in.

"Cam! David! This one is locked!" Angela yelled. Cam's breath left her lungs, as she had to remember to breath. As she approached the door, Cam could tell that it was different than the other doors and not just because it was locked. There was a lining around the door that looked like insulation that Cam could tell was meant to make sure that no other air could enter the room. There was also a large padlock on the door that would have guaranteed that the occupants of the room would be forced to stay inside.

"Angela, help me peel back this insulation. David, do you think you could shot the lock and then radio for the paramedics?" Cam directed, her mind immediately going into boss mode to help her cope.

"Sure," David said with hesitation. Cam was uncertain if he had ever even used the gun before but was willing to trust him in this instance. She and Angela made quick work of the tape and stood back; ready to let David shoot the lock. Cam held her breath and covered her ears, watching out of the corner of her eye as Angela did the same. She saw David pull his gun out and take aim. The sound the of gunshot reverberated in the basement, making her ears ring but the final result was effective; the lock unhinged and fell off the door.

David was the first to the door; hesitantly taking the lock out and starting to pry open the door. Cam and Angela quickly joined him and together, they were able to get the door open and were surprised to see that it was light inside. But the sight that greeted them, however, was one none of them wanted to see.

Cam ran into the room, very worried that all three people in the room were not conscious. She ran up to Booth and Brennan, both of them slumped against each other while Angela ran over to Hodgins, both of them checking pulses. Alarmed, Cam turned to David.

"Get those paramedics here now!"

A/N 2: We are so close to the end! Let me know what you think, please. : )


	12. Chapter 11

A/N: Sorry for the delay in posting! This was supposed to be up yesterday but I was having some problems with the site. Thanks for all the reviews. Enjoy!

Chapter 11

April 25, 2010

En route to Dulles International Airport

10:40 am EST

Harrison Sanders was currently trying to not vomit all over the back of the sedan that was driving toward the airport. He had really tied one over last night, and even though he was used to waking up with hangovers from hell, this one seemed much worse. Figuring it was because the stupid FBI had tried to hurry him out of his drunken state by giving him fluids and a banana bag this morning, he tried to focus on anything other than the turning in his stomach. Sanders began to picture the first beach he would lay on once him and Heather got to Samoa, a beautiful, beachy country that does not have an extradition treaty to the United States. He could taste the ocean air and feel the spray of the sea against his face, the sun lightly browning his skin. Pulled out of his musings by the sound of a horn blaring, Sanders glared out the window before glancing down at his watch. His view was slightly obstructed by the handcuffs, which they had not removed yet, to notice that it was almost a quarter until 11 am. In about 20 minutes, the three complications to his happiness would be dead. It had never mattered to him or Heather what happened to those three: either the FBI gave into their demands and released Heather, allowing her to flea the country, never to return, or they didn't, Booth, Brennan, and Hodgins died, and Heather would be free anyway because the rest of evidence had been destroyed. He smiled to himself at the genius of the plan, closing his eyes and dreaming of seashells as the car continued towards his freedom.

April 25, 2010

Superior Court of the District of Columbia

10:42 am EST

Caroline Julian had called for the paramedics a couple minutes ago even though she had yet to hear from Cam or Angela about the whereabouts of her witnesses. Better be safe than sorry, she thought. Although the lack of chatter on the other end of the radio she was currently holding was beginning to make her nervous. She looked over at the object of her current ire. Caroline had seen a lot of nasty things in her days as a Federal Prosecutor but this by far was the worst. Throughout all the preliminary hearings in this case, she had never seem Ms. Taffet show one ounce of remorse or emotion. And knowing that she was currently doing it again while sitting in this courtroom looking bored, made her even angrier.

"You know, Ms. Taffet, you have exactly eighteen minutes before you add three counts of kidnapping and murder to your currently long list of charges. If you tell me right now where they are, I am wiling to take the death penalty of the table if they are found a live and unharmed," Caroline told her, knowing that this, in all likelihood, would not work but was desperate for anything at this point. She looked over at Taffet's defense attorney, who ever since the message had been played had looked horrified.

Taffet simply looked over at her and smirked before resuming her staring contest with the wall. Using all of her will power, she didn't slap her across the face and went back to the prosecution's table. As she walked, she looked to Sweets, who was nervously pacing in front of the table. She was really hoping that the young psychologist was right and that Booth, Brennan, and Hodgins were somewhere in this building because if they weren't, there was no time to go somewhere else to look. The crackle of the radio broke the silence that had been present since her offer and everyone turned to the table.

"We found them!" they heard David shout through the radio. "We need the paramedics right away!"

As if the paramedics had been waiting for their cue, six of them came rushing through the doors of the courtroom, looking around.

"Where are they?" the head of the team asked.

"In the basement," Sweets said, the first one to snap out of the haze all of them had been in since David's message. "I'll take you down there."

Sweets started to lead the paramedics to the door to the basement. Caroline looked over to Taffet and was satisfied to see the first emotion from her since this whole thing began: pure panic.

April 25, 2010

Underneath the Superior Court of the District of Columbia

10:56 am EST

When Sweets got outside room that held Booth, Brennan, and Hodgins for the last 24 hours, he wasn't sure he expected to see. Definitely not what he saw when he got to their location though. Cam, Angela, and David had managed to drag them out in the hallway where there was more oxygen available. Sweets was relieved to see that they weren't performing CPR, signaling to him that all three of them were still breathing although none of them were currently conscious. Angela had taken a position by Hodgins in what Sweets saw was a very protective posture, hovering over him and looking warily at the paramedics coming in behind him. Even given the situation, it made him have some hope. Cam was with Booth and Brennan, a hand on each of their carotid arteries, making sure that each of them continued to have a pulse.

Cam turned to look at them as the paramedics came running down the hallway behind him once they saw where their patients lay. Sweets saw the expression change on her face, immediately switching to doctor mode to communicate with the paramedics.

"All three of them are unconscious with thready, weak pulses. I believe they have all undergone an anoxic event but I have no idea how long they have been without oxygen or unconscious. I am mist worried about Dr. Brennan; she seems to have a laceration on her head that could have caused a conscious. That plus the lack of oxygen may have caused her go to into a coma," Cam said, not leaving Booth and Brennan as she told the paramedics this information. They nodded to her and the three pairs of two separated and converged on their new patients.

"Get high flow oxygen on all of them, use a non-rebreather mask and we can check their oxygen saturations. Get them all on the monitors and get an IV started!" the head paramedic told the team and Sweets watched as the rest of the people quickly went into their bags, getting the masks out and attaching it to the oxygen tanks at the end of the gurneys. Cam quickly stepped aside once the paramedics arrived but Angela wouldn't leave Hodgins' side, giving the paramedics a glare that could have killed when they asked her to move aside. Determining that she was not going to move, they started to work around her, only making her move away from him slightly when they needed to get to him but allowing Angela to return to his side immediately afterward.

Sweets looked over to see the paramedics working on Booth and Brennan before glancing to look at Cam. She had her arms crossed over her chest and was shuffling from foot to foot, unable to stand still, her eyes not leaving the professionals working on her friends. Sweets looked over at Dr. Brennan, watching as the paramedic took a penlight and cracked her eyes open, testing her pupil reaction. As a trained psychologist, Sweets knew how to interpret facial expressions and subtle movements and the look he saw passing between the two paramedics after looking at Dr. Brennan worried him greatly. Apparently, he was not the only one who was good at reading expressions because out of the corner of his eye, he saw Cam look down at the ground and curse under her breath. Not good, Sweets thought.

One of the paramedics working on Booth caught Cam's attention. "Do you know where this wound on his thigh came from?" he asked her when Cam came closer to him. Sweets watched as Cam examined the wound in the same manner he had seen her examine bullet wounds or shards of human liver.

"I don't know," she concluded. "Looks like an electrical burn wound, though. Look at the way the burn continues in a red line all the way down his leg."

The paramedics nodded. "That was our assessment as well. We will get him started on fluids right away." Cam nodded and walked back towards where Sweets was standing.

After getting the oxygen on all of them, the paramedics put the backboards underneath Dr. Brennan, Dr. Hodgins, and Agent Booth and proceeded to help each team get each of them on the gurneys, confident that they were stable enough to get to the hospital.

As they were walking out of the courthouse to where the ambulances waited, Hodgins began to stir, the oxygen finally having an effect. He looked around, bewildered by his surroundings and tried to speak. Sweets could see his heart rate and blood pressure start to spike on the monitor, his body responding to the panic he was feeling. Angela was instantly by his side, reassuring him that he was safe and going to the hospital.

"Ma'am?" the paramedic said.

"I'm coming with him. No question." Angela stated. The paramedics sighed but realized that he wasn't going to change her mind. He nodded at her and helped her climb in before they raised Hodgins into the back.

"Come on, Sweets," Cam told him. He snapped out of his trance, finally realizing that he was staring at the scene before him. "We'll follow them in my car."

Sweets nodded at her and followed her to the car, watching as the three ambulances sped away with the lights and sirens blaring.

April 25, 2010

District of Columbia Jail

12:32 pm EST

Heather Taffet stared at the walls in her cell in shock, the same walls she expected to never see again when she woke up this morning. Her hands were cuffed in front of her and she was disgusted to feel the cold steel encircling her wrists. When she saw Agent Booth, Dr. Brennan, and Dr. Hodgins come up from the basement on those stretchers and the monitors attached to them showing they were still alive, supreme disappointment washed over her. And when she heard Ms. Julian get on her cell phone and order Sanders to be arrested and taken to the jail, her final hope of being set free sunk like a stone to the bottom of the ocean. Her accomplice was finally caught. And now she knew that she was going to be just like her victims: buried alive under everything the United States justice system could throw at her.

April 25, 2010

Georgetown University Hospital

11:13 pm EST

When Booth woke up, he instantly knew that he was in a hospital. Unfortunately, he had woken up in a hospital too many times before to not instantly recognize the signs: the beeping of the monitors, the smell of antiseptic, the constant clicking of people walking back and forth outside his room, and the feel of the nasal cannula in his nostrils, delivering a constant supply of oxygen that he knew he desperately needed. Booth opened his eyes, trying to remember how he got here. He didn't even know what time it was or even if it was the same day. Thinking back, he last thing he could remember was Bones telling him to go to sleep but even that memory was fuzzy around the edges. Bones! Where was she?

"Bones," he muttered, his tongue feeling like sandpaper against the roof of his mouth and the inside of his cheeks.

"Booth? Booth, are you awake?" he heard someone say and was disappointed that the voice did not belong to Bones. He looked over to see Cam coming inside his room, mercifully bringing a cup of ice chips with her. She sat on the edge of his bed and spooned a couple in his mouth. Booth closed his eyes at the sensation of the cool liquid running down the back of his throat. He sent a grateful look towards Cam before trying his question again.

"Bones?"

He saw the flash of pain in Cam' eyes and immediately began to panic.

"Booth, I know that you are worried but I need you to hear me out before you start to freak out, okay?" Cam told him. He considered this for a moment and at his node, she continued. "When Angela and I found the three of you, you were al unconscious because of the lack of oxygen. I'm not sure how much you remember but you have am electrical burn on your right thigh that is pretty ugly and is going to take a while to heal, followed by some pretty serious physical therapy to get you back to active field agent status again."

This piece of information distracted him for a moment as he looked down to see his leg covered in a mass of gauze that extended all the way down to his toes. He tried to move the leg but stopped as he felt the constant throbbing increase to a sharp, penetrating pain. The pain must have shown on his face because when he looked back to Cam. He saw an amused expression on her face, as if telling him "I told you so." Booth tried to give her a glare and nodded again for her to continue.

"Hodgins fared the best out of the three of you. He was treated for dehydration and oxygen deprivation and was discharged about two hours ago. He said to call him when you feel up to it. Dr. Brennan, however, is a different story." Booth saw Cam pause for a second as if to collect her thoughts before continuing. "Booth, Dr. Brennan had a concussion. When you guys ran out of oxygen, it unfortunately compounded the effects of concussion and she slipped into a coma. She is in the intensive care unit right now being monitored but so far, it doesn't look good. I'm so sorry, Booth."

If the monitors did tell him that his heart was still working, he would have sworn that it had broken in half. He was trying to absorb what Cam had told him but it was not making any sense to him. His Bones in a coma? Would he ever be able to speak to her again? To hold her? To tell her that he loved her, and not just in an "atta girl" type of way? The only thing that he knew was that he needed to see her and her needed to see her now.

"Cam, I need to see her," he said, trying to sit up and prepared to pull out his IV lines if he had to. Cam quickly put a hand on his arm, momentarily stilling his actions.

"Seeley, stop. You need to heal."

"I need to see Bones!" he shouted, frustrated with everything that had happened in the last couple of days. He was furious that they had been kidnapped again; forced to relive the nightmare they had all suffered through previously. And he was furious with himself for letting Bones convince him to go to sleep in their last couple of minutes together, knowing how painful it must have been for her to think that she was watching someone else she loved leave her. "Please, Cam. I need to see her," he pleaded.

He watched Cam give him a short nod and walk out of the room, talking to someone behind the desk.

*******

Booth sat in the wheelchair, fidgeting with his hands as the transport nurse pushed him down the hallway to Bones' room. He was thankful that the nurses had taken pity on him and were allowing him to see her.

"All right, Mr. Booth. You know the deal. The only reason we are even allowing this is because it is the night shift and much less crowded up here. Remember not to try and get up and leave your IVs alone," the nurse told him. Booth had the good sense to look sheepish at her words; maybe he had been a little too forceful when demanding to see Bones.

She wheeled him into the room and placed the wheelchair as close to the bed railings as possible, lowering her bed a little bit so that Booth could have a better view.

"Thanks," he told her as she walked out of the room. She gave him a kind smile and he watched briefly as he saw her settle in at the nurses' station.

That was when he finally looked at his Bones. She was hooked up to a lot more monitors than he was when he woke up; he saw some small pads connected to her forehead and some others coming out from underneath her gown that Both assumed was monitoring her heart. There was a tube down her throat that was hooked up to a big machine to the head of the bed that Booth knew was helping her breath. And it looked like she had so many IV tubes that they were tangled together in one big mess on the other side of her bed. He reached out to take her hand in his own, thankful to feel a pulse at her wrist but concerned by how cold her hands were. Booth rubbed them slightly and began to pray. He didn't know what to think, watching her then. This was not the Bones he knew. The Bones he knew would wake up and tell him that Jesus was a zombie and that Catholicism was just one of many organized religions out there. The Bones he knew would explain to him why the lack of oxygen they suffered through made her like this. And he wanted that Bones back so badly. The Bones that he had kissed hours previously, who had comforted him when he got hurt down in that basement.

He just wanted the love of his life back. Settling in and trying to make himself more comfortable in his wheelchair without ever letting go of her hand, he began to think of reasons he could tell the nurse when it was time to take him back to his room that would convince her to let him stay here. Because he was not leaving until he could look into the crystal clear depths of her blue eyes and tell her he loved her.

A/N 2: What did you think? Let me know and please review!


	13. Chapter 12

A/N: Thanks for the feedback. This story probably only has a chapter or two left. Any specific way you want to see it end? Let me know!

Chapter 12

April 27, 2010

Georgetown University Hospital

7:11 pm EST

Booth wheeled himself into Bones' room, hoping because it was the change of shift that he would go unnoticed. He had already been kicked out of her room twice today; once by Bones' nurse who chased him out this morning and the second time was by his own nurse, who came up to Bones' room when she found his empty. Of course, that was accompanied by a long and uncomfortable lecture as they were in the elevator on the way back to his room. It had been about 6 hours since he had been to her room and he was anxious to get back. In the two days they had been in the hospital, Booth had been in her room whenever the nurses would let him and even sometimes when they didn't. The only time he was in his room was when the doctors came to talk to him about his leg. The news wasn't great but Booth figured it could have been worse. They told him that the burn to his leg had damaged the underlying muscle and since it went all the way through to his foot, he was going to need to stay off of it for at least 4-6 weeks to allow the muscle to fully heal and then he was going to have intensive physical therapy afterward. They also left him know that they wanted to keep him a couple more days to make sure that there was no further complications. The wheelchair definitely made him less incognito but he had to do what he had to do.

Rebecca brought Parker his first day here. He had a good time with his son, now 11 years old and a fifth grader. He had these little skateboards that you used with your fingers and they had a fun time making up tricks and using the various equipment in his room as ramps and rails. This continued until the nurse caught them and then they were instructed to only use the things on his side table, which was still fun but the tricks were definitely less exciting.

Hodgins had also stopped by earlier in the day, with Angela in tow. Booth smiled as he watched them walk into his room. They did not make any overt signs to signal that anything had changed between them but Booth could tell that something had changed. He and Hodgins had talked for a while, avoiding anything that had to do with their time together in captivity. They talked what he had missed in hockey the last couple of days, things that had been happening around the lab, and if there were anything new happening in the world. They briefly mentioned that they had stopped by to see Bones but Booth changed the topic as quick as possible. They left after about an hour with a promise to visit him tomorrow. Booth then had nothing to do but countdown the hours until he could sneak up for visit Bones again.

Now that that time was here, he pushed himself the final distance until he was at her bedside again. He was pleased to see that the ventilator was no longer there and that she was breathing on her own. That had to be a good sign, right? He reached out and grabbed her hand, pleased to note that it was a little warmer than it was yesterday. He was getting ready for his nightly vigil over her bed when he felt someone come into the room.

"Mr. Booth," he heard. He winced as Bones' night nurse, Vivian, came up behind him. Vivian knew he well; she had let him come up here the last couple of nights but this was the first night that he was here without her permission. Time to turn on the old Booth charm, he thought. Putting on the best charm smile he could muster he turned to the nurse.

"Vivian, you look amazing this evening. Have I ever mentioned that those standard issue light green scrubs really match your eyes?" he told her.

"Can it, Mr. Booth. Nice try, but that is definitely not going to work," she told him, pinning him with a glare. "I just have one question. Does your nurse know that you are up here?"

"Yes, well sort of, I mean I am sure that when she sees that I am not in my room she will assume that I am up here," Booth told her, fumbling over his answer.

He saw Vivian look him over and suddenly knew what it felt like to be one of the suspects he was questioning. He tried to give her his most innocent look and kept a firm grip on Bones' hand. Vivian finally sighed.

"Mr. Booth, I have another patient this evening so if you give me one ounce of trouble, I will not hesitate to call your nurse and recommend the use of restraints to keep in bed. Is that understood?" she told him.

Booth gave her a thankful, goofy smile and nodded. "And call me if she wakes up," she said. She gave him one last look before leaving the room and Booth turned back to his Bones. There were fewer tubes today than there was yesterday. It took a moment before Vivian's words finally hit him.

"Wait, Vivian. What do you mean when she wakes up?" Booth asked, letting go of Bones' hand momentarily to wheel him to the doorway, needing to confirm what he thought he heard. She looked up from her charting and gave him a small smile, as if she was expecting this from him.

"The doctors took her off the sedation this afternoon. She passed the breathing test this afternoon so they weaned her off the ventilator and are expecting her to wake up sometime tonight. So, if she wakes up, please give me a call," Vivian told him.

Booth turned himself around, smiling and eager to get back to the bedside. "You could try talking to her," Vivian said, not looking up from her paperwork. "It might help her come back if she knows someone is waiting for to wake up." Vivian discreetly closed the door, leaving Booth and Bones alone.

Booth gave her a quick smile through the glass door and went back to her bed, grabbing her hand yet again. He sat nervously for a moment, trying to figure out what to say.

"Hey Bones," he began. "So, Vivian tells me that you are doing better. She says that you might even wake up tonight, which would make me really happy because I haven't spoken to you in three days. And because of that, I watched the Discovery channel all today in the hopes that there would be one of those documentaries about the African subcultures on that you make me watch…just so I can pretend that I am watching them with you, like we always do. I even tried to pretend that the pie that they gave me for lunch was from the diner but it was really bad pie. So bad that I couldn't even take more than one bite and you know that means something, Bones, because I am not sure you have ever seen me turn down pie. I mean I wouldn't even try to offer it to you, Bones, that's how bad the pie was," Booth told her, lightly rubbing her knuckles with his thumb. He didn't know what else to say. He wasn't even sure is she could hear him. There was so much he wanted to say to her but knew that she needed to be awake when he said them for the first time, or second time if you count back in September, but he didn't. So he just settled into his wheelchair, holding her hand, and watched the lights of downtown Washington D.C. that were visible from her hotel room.

He wasn't sure how much time had passed. Vivian had come in and out of the room several times, checking the remaining IV lines attached to her and turning her once or twice. The twitch in his hand was so faint at first that he thought he was imagining it. But the second one was stronger and this time he knew that he felt Bones' hand squeeze his own. He shot up quickly and leaned over her bed.

"Bones? Bones? If you are awake please say something," Booth pleaded softly.

It took a moment and another squeeze of his hand but finally, her eyelids began to flutter, and Booth finally saw the sight that he had been waiting for, a sliver of her blue eyes. He turned his hand and intertwined their fingers together. He knew she must have felt this motion because she turned her head toward him and gave him a tired smile.

"Bones?" Booth asked. "Can you say something?"

"Booth," she said, her voice coming out soft and strained. It was still the most beautiful sound he had ever heard. "I wouldn't have taken the pie anyway. You know that I don't like my fruit cooked."

He couldn't help the smile and the laugh that escaped his lips at her statement. Now there was his Bones. Since he couldn't get up and go to her, he took the hand that he was holding and brought it to his lips, giving it a gentle kiss. He looked up to see her smiling at him.

"I'll be right back, Bones. I promised the nurse I would let her know when you woke up. He felt Bones hand tightened in his and saw a brief look of panic in her eyes. He knew exactly what she was feeling but also knew that expressing any sort of separation anxiety would be hard for her. So he briefly squeezed her hand back and said, "It's okay Bones. Vivian is right outside the door. I won't even leave the room." He gently let go of her hand and pushed himself to the door. He didn't even have to say anything. Once Vivian saw her in the doorway, she came over right away.

"So, Sleeping Beauty is finally awake, huh? Did you give her a kiss to wake her up, Prince Phillip?" Vivian asked him with a smirk as she walked into the room. Booth immediately blushed and muttered under his breath as he wheeled himself over to Bones' bed.

"I don't know what that means," Bones said, looking from Vivian to Booth. "His name is not Phillip and in the United States, we have never had a monarchy system of government so he could not be a prince. And furthermore-"

"Bones, it's okay," Booth interrupted, taking her hand again. "She was referencing a Disney movie where the princess falls asleep for a very long time and the prince has to kiss her to wake her up."

"That is scientifically impossible," Bones told Vivian, who was currently listening to her lungs through a stethoscope.

"I know, Dr. Brennan. It was a joke. Your Special Agent here has been by your side every chance he gets, much to the chagrin of our nursing staff," Vivian told her, throwing a glare at Booth in the process. Booth gave her his patented charm smile and returned his attention to Bones. He patiently (or as patiently as he could) waited for Vivian to be done with her exam so he and Bones could talk privately.

"Well, Dr. Brennan, everything looks good to me. How are you feeling?" Vivian asked.

"I feel kind of fuzzy but I'm not in any pain. How long have I been unconscious?" Bones asked.

"You were out for two and a half days Bones," Booth said, leaning forward to get closer to her and he smiled to himself when he saw that she scooted closer to him as well. Booth suspected that Vivian knew as well because he saw her give him a small look while she was taking Bones' pulse. After she was done, she went out of the room and closed the door once again, leaving them alone in the hospital room.

*********

Brennan was enjoying the feeling of Booth's hand in her own. She felt strangely attached to him right now. She felt like a part of her would be missing if he left her right now, in fact, she felt like she would be physically ill and this thought did not scare her as much as she thought it would. In the past, whenever she felt close to someone, she always made sure that she ended it before she got too attached. But for some reason Booth snuck up on her heart. Rationally she knew that her heart was just a vital organ and pumped blood to her body and was incapable of feeling or showing emotion but as an anthropologist she recognized that many cultures used the heart as a symbol for love and emotion so she felt that she could use the metaphor appropriately in this situation. She didn't realize that she cared so deeply for Booth until he told her outside the diner after Zach got his doctorate and told her that there was more than one type of family. That was when she realized that she thought of him as her family. It was one of the reasons why she started seeing Sully. She was afraid that she was getting too close to him and needed to have someone else in her life to rationalize her feelings. But since Sully sailed off into the sunset, every man she had tried to date, she had compared to Booth and she was not surprised to find that they measure up.

She looked up the man at the side of her bed, and looked into his reassuring brown eyes. She saw the caring within his gaze and was truly touched by the genuine affection she saw there. When she told him to go to sleep in the temporary prison, she felt her heart break in a million pieces. She truly felt that they were not going to be rescued and didn't want to see him suffer. And now that they were both here and he was touching her, she couldn't contain her feelings. The only problem was that since she had never been in the situation where her feelings became something she could no longer rationalize; she did not know how she was going to express them to Booth in an appropriate manner. She felt her eyes begin to well up without her permission and angrily tried to hide her emotional reaction.

"Bones?" she heard Booth ask. "Are you okay? Are you in pain? Do you need me to call Vivian?" Brennan almost started to laugh at Booth's statement. Over-protective alpha male to the T.

"No, Booth. I am not in any pain," she told him. "I was just thinking."

"No surprise there," Booth told her, giving her the smile that she thought was reserved just for her.

"Booth, have you thought at all about what happened in the basement?" Brennan asked him, dropping the eye contact they had been maintaining since she woke up. She knew that she was being deliberately obtuse but she couldn't bring herself to ask specifically about the kiss or anything else. She hoped that Booth was going to do that because of his over-developed feminine side that he was always denying.

"You mean, like the kiss?" she heard him ask. She could feel Booth's eyes on her but could not look him in the eye just yet. She didn't answer him, continuing to look down at her blanket. She felt Booth continue to caress her hand.

"I have thought a lot about it Bones. I actually spent a lot of time sitting in this exact same spot over the last couple of days thinking about that kiss," Booth told her. There was a long pause before she heard him speak again. "And how much I wanted to do it again once you woke up."

Her head snapped up his statement, the surprise and relief clear in her eyes.

"I've thought about it as well," Brennan told him.

Booth chuckled and Brennan could feel the vibrations from his laugh in their connected hands. "And considering that you are a genius, you have probably thought about it in the hour that you have been awake as much as I have in that last two days," he told her with a twinkle in his eye.

"Sorry to interrupt," Vivian said, poking her head in the doorway. "But Booth, your nurse just called and said that if you are not back in your room in fifteen minutes, she is going to make you stay here for an extra week."

Brennan smiled at the look of horror that crossed his face at the thought of staying in the hospital any longer than absolutely necessary.

"You better get back to your room, Booth," Brennan told him, not wanting him to go but getting very tired. He nodded at her and gave her hand one final squeeze before letting go and moving to wheel himself out of the room. Right before he left though, he turned around and looked at her over his shoulder.

"You know, Bones, when we get out of here, I would like to take you out."

Brennan looked at him with a blank look on her face. "You mean, like a date?" she asked.

Booth looked to be considering this for a moment before replying. "Yep. Like a real, bona fide, more-than-partners, date." He gave her the smile but Brennan could tell that he was a little unsure of himself.

Brennan smiled back at him. "I would like that, Booth."

He nodded before wheeling himself back towards the door. "Then it's a date."

"It's a date," she repeated, watching him wheel himself down the hallway. When he was out of sight, she closed her heavy eyes, falling asleep with a content smile on her face, hoping that out of their awful situation something good had started.

A/N 2: What did you think? Please leave a review!


	14. Chapter 13

A/N: Thanks for the reviews. They make my day! This chapter has a lot of fluff and this story has one chapter left. Enjoy!

Chapter 13

June 17, 2010

Superior Court of the District of Columbia

3:13 pm EST

"And that's when we figured out that the oxygen to the room had been shut off and we would soon suffocate," Hodgins said, answering Ms. Julian's question. He had been on the stand for about thirty minutes now and was becoming emotionally exhausted after reliving the nightmare that occurred two months ago to the entire courtroom. Looking over at the defendant's table, he glared at Ms Taffet and Mr. Sanders, who he now knew was the Grave Digger's accomplice. While Hodgins felt vindicated that Sanders existed and he was right about the Grave Digger having an accomplice, he was mad that he was right for perhaps the first time in his professional career. Because him being right this time almost cost him his life and the lives of his friends. He moved his gaze from the defendants to said friends. They had rarely been apart since the incident had occurred and although they hadn't told anyone yet, Hodgins was quite certain that they were together in a more than professional capacity. After all, he had been there with them during their captivity and had seen what had transpired between them, although he had tried to give them some measure of privacy. They were sitting next to each other behind Caroline, their shoulders barely touching but it would be hard to measure any space between them.

"What do you remember after that, Dr. Hodgins?" Caroline asked him, interrupting his thoughts. He focused himself back to his present location.

"Um, not too much. When 10 am came around, Agent Booth took a quarter and started tapping out an "SOS" message onto the exposed wire from the speaker. We were hoping that Judge Brewster would hear it and we would somehow get some help. After about ten minutes, though, Agent Booth began to tire because of the lack of oxygen. I mean, we were all feeling it at that point but because Agent Booth is bigger than Dr. Brennan or myself, he started to feel the effects before us. After that, it all becomes very…fuzzy. I must have passed out because the next thing I remember was waking up at the hospital a couple of hours later," Hodgins finished, ready to get off the stand but knowing he still had to face the questions from the defense attorney.

He wasn't expecting much from them though. This case was pretty much a done deal. In the two months since their capture, the Jeffersonian team along with the FBI was able to go over the note that Hodgins found in his pocket and find physical evidence to tie Sanders to the case. That, combined with the realization that William Burton and Harrison Sanders were, in fact, the same person sealed the case as far as anyone involved, including the defense was concerned. They had tried to get a plea bargain in the beginning but Caroline was so convinced that they would be convicted, she refused. She had consulted them before the going ahead with the trial, wanting to make sure that they would be emotionally ready for the trial to take place. After discussing, they all decided that it would probably be a cathartic process to testify and face the people that not once, but twice had buried them in what could have been their final resting place.

"I have no further questions at this time, Your Honor," Caroline said, returning to the prosecution's table. Hodgins was the last of the three to testify. Brennan and Booth had both testified earlier today and you could tell just by looking at them. They both looked they had just been through the wringer and Hodgins had no doubt that he currently looked the same way. They were ready for this case to be over and for their captors to have their sentence.

Hodgins turned his gaze toward the defendant's table, waiting for the questions to come. Brennan and Booth had only gotten a couple of questions so he wasn't expecting much but he wasn't looking forward to it either.

The defense attorney stood up, cleared his throat, and said, "The defense has no questions for this witness, Your Honor." Hodgins released a breath he didn't even know he was holding. Looking at the judge to confirm that he could really step down, he got up, discreetly using the sides of the chair to help him stand on his shaky legs, and walked over to the spot on the bench beside Booth and the aisle. He really wanted to go sit next to Angela but she was down at the other end of the bench and he didn't want to step over people. That was another thing that had changed over the last couple of months. While they were not together in the traditional sense of the word, they were best friends again, something that they both realized they used dearly since their broken engagement. She had really taken care of him when he got home from the hospital and he wasn't sure where he would be mentally if she hadn't been there. They both knew that they were heading toward being together again, but for now were enjoying their friendship and just being their for each other again. He looked down toward her and she gave him a small smile and a nod, making him feel like he was floating.

"Counsel," Judge Watson asked the defense. "Do you have anything else before we adjourn for the day?"

Hodgins saw the defense attorney look toward his clients and when he got two cold looks in return, sigh and stand up. "No, Your Honor," he replied.

Judge Watson shook her head before picking up the gavel. "Okay, then. We will resume at 10 am tomorrow morning, when the defense will be prepared to present their case-"

"You Honor," the defense attorney interrupted. "My clients do not wish to present any evidence. We are ready to go to a verdict."

Hodgins looked at Booth and Brennan, all of them communicating the same shock. They had assumed that the defense would try something to keep his clients out of federal prison for the rest of their lives. But looking at Sanders and Taffet, Hodgins saw them nod to each other and realized it wasn't the defense attorney that was calling the shots in this trial. Looking back toward his friends, he made eye contact with Booth and noted that he had seen the same thing, the hardened look in his eyes and the clenching of his jaw telltale signs. Brennan, seemingly oblivious to what was going on between Taffet and Sanders but very much in tune to her partners increasing anxiety, put her hand on Booth's knee, gently squeezing before softly running her thumb over his patella. Hodgins was not surprised to see Booth relax almost instantly. He turned his head to look at her and while Hodgins couldn't see the look that passed between partners but he did see Booth discreetly take his right hand and entwine his fingers with hers. Hodgins knew he was smiling like an idiot, but he couldn't help it. He was glad that it looked like his friends finally got their act together.

"Very well, then," Judge Watson said, drawing Hodgins' attention back to the trial. "Then we will resume tomorrow morning to hear closing statements. We are adjourned." She then banged the gavel and the courtroom began to bustle with people standing and starting to talk. Hodgins stood as well, looking down the aisle at his friends. Booth and Brennan were no longer holding hands but were still standing close. Booth nodded to him and Hodgins got the message, walking out of the courtroom, knowing that they were all following him.

Once outside on the courthouse steps, Hodgins closed his eyes and let the June sun wash over him, warming his tried bones. He felt a hand on his back and opened his eyes to see Angela standing behind him, her soothing presence doing a lot to ease his frazzled nerves. He gave her a tried smile and looked to see that everyone was there.

"Man, am I glad that is done," Booth started, still standing close to Brennan. She looked as exhausted as he felt. Hodgins figured now they all needed a good nights sleep, hoping uninterrupted by nightmares.

After a couple of moments of silence, Cam finally said, "Why doesn't everyone go home and get some rest? We don't have any active cases at the lab and this was a trying day for all of us."

Hodgins looked over at Brennan, who, as he expected, immediately started to argue. "But I have World War I soldiers-" Cam was about to cut her off when Booth playfully slung his arm around her shoulders.

"Come on, Bones. It's a beautiful day outside. I just got rid of that stupid cane, we just got done testifying, life is good. Let's go enjoy," Booth told her, not removing his arm. Brennan looked like she was about to protest but then her and Booth made eye contact and Hodgins could tell that they were in the middle of one of their annoying eye conversations again. He looked to Angela and saw her studying those two like he studies bugs under his microscope. He knew she was suspicious of their relationship and wanted desperately to know what was going on. Hodgins laughed suddenly, making everyone look at him. Blushing for a moment, he said. "You know what? Booth's right. Let's go enjoy. In fact, Angela and I were going to go to this concert on the Mall tonight. The National Symphony is playing for free; people bring blankets to sit on and picnic baskets and have a good time. Anyone want to join us?"

Booth and Brennan made eye contact again before Brennan responded. "We'll be there, Hodgins. Sounds like a good distraction before we have to come back here tomorrow for he verdict." They were quiet again at the reminder of the unpleasantness they had just relived. Cam made some excuse about spending the evening with Michelle before heading off to her car. After making plans with Booth and Brennan to meet up that evening, Angela and Hodgins walked toward the diner, hoping to get a bite to eat. As they walked around, Hodgins couldn't help but appreciate the fresh air around him and the wide-open space that the outdoors provided. Once this trial was over, he was going to take some vacation time and take Angela out to the property that his family owned in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, where there wide open spaces everywhere.

June 17, 2010

The National Mall

7:15 pm EST

Brennan sat, watching as the sun began to set and the vibrant hues of orange and red streaked across the sky against the light blue background of the sky. It had been a long day and although she was tired, the buzzing of all the people around her kept her awake and gave her a pleasant burst of energy. The Mall was crowded but they had managed to find a nice spot near the back of the audience. The evening was cooler than they expected so Brennan was currently waiting with Angela for Booth and Hodgins to get back from the car with their jackets. Sitting on the soft blanket, surrounded by all of these people, Brennan couldn't help but feel content. She had spent a nice afternoon with Booth at her apartment, writing her book while Booth sat with her on the couch watching whatever sports team was on, his arm around her shoulders, absent mindedly running his hand across her deltoid. When she had realized that he would be spending a lot more time at her apartment in the near future, she had finally bought a television. They had been together now for two months, ever since she left the hospital and had not told anyone yet, though she wasn't sure she was fooling Angela. But they had decided to tell their friends tonight, both of them tired of restricting themselves in front of their friends. Because while it had been nice to have the relationship to themselves for the beginning, they were both ready to move forward. Brennan was slightly nervous but after talking about it with Booth, she knew that they would be happy for them. She was really hoping that Angela didn't ask her about it now though; she wanted Booth to be there when she found out.

"So, sweetie," said friend began, just sitting down after returning from the restroom. "How was your afternoon with Agent Studly?"

Brennan gave her a good-natured glare, which just made the artist smirk even more and Brennan belatedly realized that she had just confirmed Angela's suspicion about whom she spend her afternoon with. Sighing and realizing that it wouldn't do any good to lie, she told her the truth.

"It was fine. We just hung out at my apartment. Booth watched the game and I worked on my book," Brennan told her, deciding not the mention the part about the kissing on the couch after the game ended. She could tell that her answer did not satisfy the artist and anxiously waited for Booth to get back so she wouldn't have to face the interrogation by herself. She smiled when she saw him and Hodgins walking toward their position, careful to avoid stepping on anyone's hands and avoiding the children that occasionally run across their path, laughing and trying t chase down fireflies. When Booth looked up, he smiled at her; the smile she knew was just reserved for her. She automatically smiled back, glad that he was returning. The warmth in his eyes automatically made her feel warmer in the cool evening. He looked absolutely sinful this evening. He was wearing a dark pair of blue jeans with a black T-shirt and the green jacket. She loved seeing him out of the suits and in casual clothing and out of the suit and not in any clothing, she thought as she blushed a little. He still walked with a slight limp from the burn injury that he suffered while they were in captivity but had healed remarkably well and was able to get rid of his cane a couple of days ago. He was now seeing his physical therapist twice a week to get him back to full speed again. She became nervous again though when she thought about telling Angela and Hodgins about their relationship because while they had decided to them about it, the 'how' had not been decided upon. Apparently, though, Booth had already thought of that.

"Hey, babe," he said, leaning down to give her a quick peck on the lips. "I got your jacket and Hodgins here got us some more to drink. I'll put it in the cooler." As Booth went to put the extra water and beer in the big blue cooler that they brought for the evening, Brennan glanced over at Angela to see her mouth wide open. Some would use the phrase "jaw on the floor" but Brennan knew that this was anatomically impossible, as even if the jaw were to unhinge, the skin and muscle attachments would prohibit such an action. But it was as close to an analogy as she could think of in this instance. Hodgins wore no such shocked expression, sitting down beside Angela and giving her a small smile. Brennan smiled back, quickly put her jacket on, and looked up to see where her boyfriend went.

She noticed that he was repositioning the cooler so that it was on their blanket, near the back of it. He then sat down with his back against the cooler, which Brennan thought was a smart move considering his back problems. But then he did something that surprised her. He sat with a leg on either side of her and slid his arms around her waist, pulling her so that her back rested against his chest and her head found a comfortable resting place against his shoulder. She snuggled closer into him, feeling completely content and turned her head up to give him a kiss on the lips as a thank you and placed her hands on his, entwining their fingers together and giving them a squeeze. Glancing back at Angela, she began to laugh at her friend's still shocked expression.

"You okay, Ange?" Booth asked and Brennan could feel the question rumble through his chest against her back. It made her shiver slightly and she knew Booth mistook the shiver of desire for coldness as he tightened his hold on her.

This seemed to snap Angela out of her trance. "When did this happen?" she asked in a much more calm tone that she was expecting. Brennan glanced up at Booth and made eye contact. She could see him telling her that she could tell Angela.

"We have been together for about two months now," Brennan began and instantly saw a look of hurt flash across her friend's eyes. "I'm sorry we didn't tell you sooner but we wanted to keep it quiet for a little bit. With all the chaos from the trial and with both of us healing, we wanted to keep it quiet and figure out everything that was happening between us before announcing it to our friends," Brennan finished, hoping her friend would understand. Booth gave her hand a squeeze, giving her the silent support she loved. She watched as Angela's face softened and a smile overtook her features.

"I'm really happy for you two, sweetie. But you owe me a serious girl talk," Angela told her. Brennan gratefully nodded to her and settled back more firmly in Booth's embrace, getting ready for the concert to begin.

As the night continued and the soft strands of Copland echoed through the night from the makeshift amphitheatre, Brennan couldn't help by sigh in contentment. As she felt Booth place a soft kiss on her head, the thoughts of the trial slipped from her mind and she for once stopped thinking and relished the feeling of being in the arms of the man she loved.

A/N 2: So what did you think? Please let me know and leave a review!


	15. Chapter 14

A/N: This is it; the last chapter. Thank you to everyone who reviewed and added this story to their alerts. I am sincerely grateful for the support for this story and wouldn't have been able to finish it without it. So I am going to ask one last time to please review and let me know what you think. It makes me a better writer and inspires me to write more. So, without further delay, enjoy!

Chapter 14

June 18, 2010

Superior Court of the District of Columbia

1:34 pm EST

"Has the jury reached a verdict?" Judge Watson asked the Jury Foreman. Booth started bouncing his leg up and down, a bad habit he had developed to express his nervousness. In the past though, this action had a nice side effect, probably why he had never chosen to try and break this bad habit. For whenever this happened, Bones would always put her hand on his knee to still the action. And before about two months ago, this was some of the only physical contact he got with her. Of course since that had changed now, he wasn't sure if the habit would continue. Booth smiled as sure enough, he felt her hand grip his knee to still his movement. Her touch evoked memories of their morning together, a perfect moment between just the two of them before the reality of coming to the courtroom to hear the verdict set in.

June 18, 2010

FBI Special Agent Seeley Booth's apartment

7:12 am EST

Booth woke up and felt hot, hotter than the balmy June morning should have made him. The blankets had been kicked to the end of the bed and as he looked around, he realized that the sun was peeking around his curtains, making a spatter pattern against the opposite wall. He heard a soft sigh beside him and felt the puff of air that accompanied it wash over his chest, leaving the skin in its wake slightly prickled in surprise at the change in temperature. Bones was curled into him, her head resting on his shoulder and her arm slung across his abdomen as he lay on his back. That was probably the most surprising thing about Bones that he never would have guessed before their relationship. She loved to snuggle with him, especially after they made love. She would get really, really grumpy if he tried to leave her and as much as it amused him to see her pout at him, he didn't like to see her unhappy.

And it looked as if something was disturbing her sleep right now. The worry lines on her forehead were more pronounced and Booth could she her eyes moving rapidly behind her eyelids. Over the last two months, they both had their fair share of nightmares, some regarding their captivity by the Grave Digger, some with issues brought up from their near death experience with each other. But the most important thing was that they were there to wake each other up and comfort each other when it got to be too much. Now, it was Booth's turn. He gently kissed her forehead and rubbed soothing circles on her back with the arm she was currently sleeping on.

"Bones, wake up baby," he whispered in her ear, hoping to wake her up gently. He felt more than saw her change in breathing against his side that indicated to him that he had been successful in his goal of waking her. He saw her eyes blink open and was immediately met with her bright blue eyes still fuzzy with sleep. He could see the instant she became oriented with her surroundings and left the nightmare behind in her sleep. Looking at her, he knew he was gazing into the eyes of the love of his life, the woman that he wanted to wake up next to every morning and come drag out of the lab every night. Booth had no illusions that just because they were in a committed relationship she was going to become Holly Homemaker and he was glad; that was not the woman he fell in love with. The woman he fell in love with was fiercely independent, wicked smart, always challenging him, and sometimes frustrated him to no end but he wouldn't have it any other way. She finally came back to herself and he could see the clarity return to her deep blue eyes.

"You okay?" he asked softly. She just nodded against his shoulder and Booth chuckled as he felt her bury her face further into his skin. He continued to rub her back and began to place soft kisses on her temple and across her forehead, determined to wake her up. He heard her groan and felt it vibrate into his shoulder before he felt her gently nip at his skin, a clear signal to him to stop but he didn't care. Adding his hands into the mix, he gently began to tickle her sides against her rib cage making her begin to squirm. Her quiet giggle was the best sound he ever heard and the smile it put on his face made his cheeks hurt.

"Stop it, Booth," she managed to say through her giggles, batting his hands away from her sides. She turned her head and captured his lips in a passionate kiss, effectively stopping his tickling in the best way possible. After a few moments spent getting reacquainted with each other after six long hours of sleep, Booth reluctantly broke away; knowing that they needed to get moving so they could be in court by 9 am. Sitting up, he gave Bones one last kiss before jumping out of bed.

"Let's boogie, Bones. We have to get to court." At her pout, he grabbed her hand and gave her his patented charm smile. "Which, rationally means that we should shower together to save time."

He saw her smile and get out of bed, following closely behind him, saying "I love when you get rational, Booth."

*******

June 18, 2010

Outside the Superior Court of the District of Columbia

2:04 pm EST

Heather Taffet sat in the back of the police cruiser, hands cuffed behind her back, waiting for it to take her to the airport and back to her maximum security cell in Colorado. She had not been surprised by the guilty verdict; after all, she had been a federal prosecutor and knew that the case against her was very strong. That was why she told her defense attorney not to fight the case, hoping it would help her in the sentencing part of the trial, hoping she would somehow be able to breath free air again sometime in the future. Hearing the engine start, two more FBI Agents slid into the car and Heather chuckled darkly. Where did they think she was gong to go?

Feeling the car stop at a stoplight, she glanced out the window and scowled at what she saw. There was Booth and Brennan, walking hand-in-hand, down the sidewalk, looking like they were enjoying the summer day. He said something to her, which made her break out in a radiant smile, making him smile as well. Heather doubted they knew that anyone even existed they were so wrapped up in each other. As the car started again, she looked back at them one last time to see Brennan pull him in for a quick kiss before going on their way. The happy couple fading into the distance, Heather's scowl returned as she began to plot her revenge against the three that got away; the triad of the trial.


End file.
